UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Acquired by Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.

Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1,342.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 26,906 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 25,041 shares during the quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $14,165,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 100,076.4% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,823,820 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $6,268,753,000 after buying an additional 11,812,017 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,210,004,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1,682.4% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,691,542 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,372,606,000 after purchasing an additional 2,540,538 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 53,573.1% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,352,490 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,238,515,000 after purchasing an additional 2,348,107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 143.4% during the 2nd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 3,494,100 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,679,401,000 after purchasing an additional 2,058,829 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

NYSE UNH traded up $20.61 on Tuesday, reaching $466.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,857,886 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,365,553. The firm has a market cap of $429.84 billion, a PE ratio of 19.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $491.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $515.88. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 week high of $554.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.37. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 6.02% and a return on equity of 26.39%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.7 EPS for the current 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 given a dividend of $1.88 per share. 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 1.61%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 31.54%.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $584.00 to $581.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $551.00 price target on the stock. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $675.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $573.80.

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.