Bensler LLC Reduces Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Bensler LLC decreased its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,078 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 67 shares during the period. Bensler LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $4,139,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Delta Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Delta Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,650 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $965,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 40.0% in the 2nd quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Saxony Capital Management LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 3.5% in the second quarter. Saxony Capital Management LLC now owns 530 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $270,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 3,124 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,591,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Group LLC raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 3,695 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,882,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UNH stock opened at $605.45 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1 year low of $436.38 and a 1 year high of $608.63. The firm has a market cap of $557.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.44, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.58. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $581.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $543.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.91.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.63% and a return on equity of 26.37%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.56 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Stephens cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $632.00 to $605.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, October 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $675.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com cut UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res cut UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $615.53.

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.