Marino Stram & Associates LLC Has $383,000 Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Marino Stram & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 758 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $383,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 16.3% in the fourth quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,210 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,624,000 after purchasing an additional 451 shares in the last quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 1,674 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $847,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. West Branch Capital LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 11,170 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $5,650,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 2,872 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,449,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Missouri Trust & Investment Co grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 23.0% during the 4th quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 3,864 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,955,000 after acquiring an additional 723 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of UNH stock opened at $519.08 on Thursday. 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 firm’s 50-day moving average is $545.26 and its 200-day moving average is $564.10. The stock has a market cap of $477.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.49, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.83 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.75 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,302,065. This trade represents a 28.57 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. HSBC raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $627.74.

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.