Argus Investors Counsel Inc. Sells 88 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. lowered its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,464 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 88 shares during the quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $856,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UNH. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the first quarter worth about $1,117,462,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 107.8% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,306,729 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,141,113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,758 shares in the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter worth about $480,903,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 30.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,816,254 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,942,956,000 after buying an additional 880,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 1,125.4% during the 2nd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 894,006 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $455,281,000 after buying an additional 821,050 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of UNH stock traded down $1.52 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $569.95. The company had a trading volume of 838,795 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,945,981. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $584.55 and a 200-day moving average of $535.49. The company has a market capitalization of $526.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.23, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.58. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $608.63.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.00 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The business’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $6.56 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen raised their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $591.00 to $644.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Argus raised their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, HSBC lowered UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $615.58.

UnitedHealth Group Company 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.