Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC Raises Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,198 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,119,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,468 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,352,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $158,000. GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1,337.3% in the 4th quarter. GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. now owns 97,679 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $51,425,000 after purchasing an additional 90,883 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 49.3% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,617,813 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,904,670,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195,352 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversified LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Diversified LLC now owns 2,879 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,516,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock traded up $1.15 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $579.22. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,282,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,177,200. The firm has a market capitalization of $534.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.40, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $536.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $509.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $591.54.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $98.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.14 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 51.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on UNH shares. Truist Financial raised their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $555.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Baird R W upgraded UnitedHealth Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Argus raised their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $614.17.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,812,029.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total value of $1,624,727.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.