Stewart & Patten Co. LLC Increases Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Stewart & Patten Co. LLC raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 38,054 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 594 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises approximately 2.8% of Stewart & Patten Co. LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Stewart & Patten Co. LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $18,825,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of UNH. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $497.00 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $498.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $501.63. The company has a market cap of $457.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.60. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $554.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. The business 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%. The company’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 17th were paid a $2.10 dividend. This is a boost from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.88. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 17th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is 51.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $591.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Robert W. Baird started coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $597.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $559.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $545.00 to $562.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $579.74.

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.