Buffington Mohr McNeal Boosts Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Buffington Mohr McNeal increased its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,769 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Buffington Mohr McNeal’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $932,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Robbins Farley purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Richelieu Gestion SA purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1,000.0% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 340.0% during the third quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 66 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 148.1% during the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 67 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $591.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $610.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $551.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $573.80.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 5.5 %

NYSE UNH traded up $24.47 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $470.10. 8,118,751 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,353,397. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The company has a market cap of $433.40 billion, a PE ratio of 19.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $491.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $515.88. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.37. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.39% and a net margin of 6.02%. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.26 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.7 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Investors 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 yield of 1.60%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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.