UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Purchased by National Pension Service

National Pension Service lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,440,593 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 27,533 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 1.1% of National Pension Service’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. National Pension Service’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $758,429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of UNH. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 25,220,234 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $12,715,790,000 after buying an additional 527,526 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,787,768 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,934,895,000 after buying an additional 341,749 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,984,853 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,143,004,000 after acquiring an additional 141,646 shares in the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.5% in the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 5,757,410 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,902,829,000 after purchasing an additional 352,710 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 20.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,725,650 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,879,245,000 after buying an additional 623,631 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $545.00 to $562.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $605.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. StockNews.com lowered UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Barclays upped their price objective 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. Finally, HSBC raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $460.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $570.05.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock traded up $0.76 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $503.97. 612,599 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,321,444. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $481.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $511.98. The firm has a market cap of $463.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.92, 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The company had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.26 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 11th were issued a $1.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 45.97%.

About UnitedHealth Group

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.