Stephens Trims UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Target Price to $605.00

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) had its target price lowered by Stephens from $632.00 to $605.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock.

UNH has been the subject of several other reports. KeyCorp began coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, October 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $675.00 price target for the company. HSBC increased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Argus raised their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $615.58.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:UNH opened at $569.61 on Wednesday. UnitedHealth Group has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $608.63. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $584.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $534.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $524.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.82, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.56 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.68 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 51.34%.

Institutional Trading of UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% during the 2nd quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 54 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Delos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% during the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.