UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Stock Price Up 1.3% – Should You Buy?

by · The Markets Daily

Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH – Get Free Report) traded up 1.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $565.47 and last traded at $565.23. 447,800 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 3,877,344 shares. The stock had previously closed at $557.77.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNH has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $481.00 to $647.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $615.53.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on UNH

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $581.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $543.74. The stock has a market cap of $559.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.58.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.56 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.72%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth approximately $2,905,000. Asset Planning Services Inc. LA ADV raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Planning Services Inc. LA ADV now owns 12,465 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $7,288,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 13.7% in the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 24,976 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $14,603,000 after acquiring an additional 3,006 shares in the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 10.8% during the third quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 20,377 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $11,914,000 after purchasing an additional 1,984 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concord Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the first quarter worth approximately $14,544,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

About UnitedHealth Group

(Get Free Report)

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.

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