Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Cuts Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. decreased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 7.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,860 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 868 shares during the quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $5,717,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Fund Management LLC raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC now owns 5,458 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,874,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 70,607 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $37,172,000 after purchasing an additional 3,760 shares during the last quarter. AJOVista LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $247,000. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 765.4% during the 4th quarter. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 22,283 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $11,732,000 after buying an additional 19,708 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Provence Wealth Management Group raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 33.1% in the fourth quarter. Provence Wealth Management Group now owns 2,468 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,299,000 after acquiring an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.1 %

UNH traded down $0.52 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $492.45. 2,487,811 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,130,659. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $482.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $512.76. The company has a market cap of $453.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.10, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.55. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two 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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.50% and a net margin of 4.05%. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.26 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a $1.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 32,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,527,306.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $566.00 to $571.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $610.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $591.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $605.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $570.05.

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.