Ledyard National Bank Reduces Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Ledyard National Bank reduced its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,667 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 164 shares during the period. Ledyard National Bank’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $9,745,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Insight Partners LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 3.8% during the first quarter. Capital Insight Partners LLC now owns 9,045 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,475,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares during the period. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter valued at about $2,905,000. Vantage Investment Partners LLC increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 42.2% during the first quarter. Vantage Investment Partners LLC now owns 152,107 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $75,247,000 after purchasing an additional 45,173 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 72,689 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $35,126,000 after acquiring an additional 469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concord Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 1st quarter valued at $14,544,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $571.46 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $584.55 and a 200-day moving average of $535.49. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 week high of $608.63. The stock has a market cap of $527.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

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

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 54.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stephens cut their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $632.00 to $605.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, HSBC cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $615.58.

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.