Brokerages Set UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) PT at $629.32

Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) have received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the twenty-one brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $629.32.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on UNH. Barclays decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $642.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Hsbc Global Res raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $625.00 to $610.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 1.3 %

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $517.72 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. UnitedHealth Group has a 12 month low of $436.38 and a 12 month high of $630.73. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $510.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $547.47. The firm has a market cap of $473.57 billion, a PE ratio of 33.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The firm had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.83 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group will post 29.54 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 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.19%.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the acquisition, 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 position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.