UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Bought by Red Tortoise LLC

Red Tortoise LLC increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 45.1% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 74 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the quarter. Red Tortoise LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $36,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bell Investment Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 525 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $276,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 35,946 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $17,783,000 after purchasing an additional 1,129 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,941 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $8,919,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the period. Austin Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,246 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $573,000 after buying an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bellecapital International Ltd. raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Bellecapital International Ltd. now owns 13,823 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $7,277,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UNH stock opened at $489.90 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $450.90 billion, a PE ratio of 29.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $498.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $501.12. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $554.70.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.26 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.55 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 17th were given a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 17th. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.88. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.71%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on UNH. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $597.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.