UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Purchased by West Branch Capital LLC

West Branch Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,170 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 162 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 1.8% of West Branch Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. West Branch Capital LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $5,650,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Delta Financial Group Inc. increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1.0% in the third quarter. Delta Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,650 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $965,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the period. First PREMIER Bank increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 274 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $160,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Genesee Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Genesee Capital Advisors LLC now owns 990 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $579,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Jmac Enterprises LLC increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% in the third quarter. Jmac Enterprises LLC now owns 823 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Finally, Matrix Private Capital Group LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Matrix Private Capital Group LLC now owns 542 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $276,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $519.08 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $477.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.62. The company’s fifty day moving average is $545.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $564.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $101.60 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $5.83 EPS. Equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were given a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Truist Financial reduced their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $625.00 to $610.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $650.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $627.74.

Insider Activity

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn bought 1,000 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,302,065. The trade was a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.