Dearborn Partners LLC Buys 42 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Dearborn Partners LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 545 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $511.57 per share, with a total value of $511,570.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 4,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,302,065. The trade was a 28.57 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $486.54 on Wednesday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $512.82 and a 200-day moving average of $552.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market cap of $445.04 billion, a PE ratio of 31.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.60 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.83 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on UNH. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $694.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $650.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, January 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $700.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, StockNews.com raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $629.32.

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.