Park Avenue Securities LLC Sells 2,981 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Park Avenue Securities LLC lessened its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 8.9% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 30,622 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,981 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $17,904,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Macroview Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position 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 buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% in the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at $16,812,029.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on UNH. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $601.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Barclays lifted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, HSBC boosted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $614.17.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $592.75 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $547.36 billion, a PE ratio of 36.23, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.58. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $581.82 and a 200-day moving average of $526.64. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $436.38 and a 12 month high of $607.94.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $98.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.14 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 51.34%.

UnitedHealth Group 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.