Sapient Capital LLC Takes $95.83 Million Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 182,022 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $95,829,000. UnitedHealth Group makes up about 2.4% of Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 25,220,234 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $12,715,790,000 after acquiring an additional 527,526 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,787,768 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,934,895,000 after buying an additional 341,749 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,242,282 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,155,676,000 after buying an additional 180,331 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,843,207 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,937,976,000 after purchasing an additional 27,127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 5,757,410 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,902,829,000 after acquiring an additional 352,710 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock traded down $0.52 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $492.45. The company had a trading volume of 2,487,811 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,130,659. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a 50 day moving average of $482.32 and a 200-day moving average of $512.76. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 week high of $554.70. The firm 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 (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.63 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.26 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $1.88 per share. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on UNH shares. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $605.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $591.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $570.05.

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.