Wright Investors Service Inc. Sells 3,352 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Wright Investors Service Inc. lessened its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 17.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,483 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 3,352 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises 2.3% of Wright Investors Service Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $8,151,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HF Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 53.3% in the 4th quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,289 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $678,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 1,952 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,028,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Court Place Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Court Place Advisors LLC now owns 4,234 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,229,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 28,582 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $15,048,000 after acquiring an additional 874 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 183,323 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $96,513,000 after acquiring an additional 9,359 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $566.00 to $571.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. HSBC raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $460.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 5th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $569.68.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE:UNH traded up $16.20 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $495.19. 3,698,705 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,454,605. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $436.38 and a one year high of $554.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business’s 50 day moving average is $489.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $515.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $456.53 billion, a PE ratio of 30.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.54.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The business’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.26 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.75 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were given a $1.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is presently 45.97%.

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.