Osborne Partners Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Osborne Partners Capital Management LLC cut its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,040 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 62 shares during the quarter. Osborne Partners Capital Management LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $526,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of UNH. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 132.1% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 65 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $511.57 per share, with a total value of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,302,065. The trade was a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. HSBC upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $629.32.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of UNH opened at $542.30 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $499.07 billion, a PE ratio of 34.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.91. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $436.38 and a 12 month high of $630.73. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $536.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $565.26.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The firm had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.83 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.19%.

UnitedHealth Group Profile

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a diversified health care company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: UnitedHealthcare, Optum Health, Optum Insight, and Optum Rx. The UnitedHealthcare segment offers consumer-oriented health benefit plans and services for national employers, public sector employers, mid-sized employers, small businesses, and individuals; health care coverage, and health and well-being services to individuals age 50 and older addressing their needs; Medicaid plans, children's health insurance and health care programs; and health and dental benefits, and hospital and clinical services, as well as health care benefits products and services to state programs caring for the economically disadvantaged, medically underserved, and those without the benefit of employer-funded health care coverage.