Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Sells 2,641 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. reduced its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 36,115 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,641 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 0.7% of Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $18,269,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $516.94 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $472.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.35, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $509.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $546.15. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $101.60 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.83 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on UNH. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $642.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $694.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Stephens increased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $629.32.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $511.57 per share, with a total value of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,065. This represents a 28.57 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About UnitedHealth Group

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.