Michael S. Ryan Inc. Lowers Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Michael S. Ryan Inc. cut its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 3.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 833 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 33 shares during the period. Michael S. Ryan Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $412,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 1,000.0% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 148.1% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 67 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on UNH. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $675.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $559.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded UnitedHealth Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $579.74.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $481.05 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $442.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.40, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.58. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $494.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $505.02. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $554.70.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $99.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.57 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 17th will be paid a $2.10 dividend. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.88. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 17th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 51.34%.

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.