Howe & Rusling Inc. Has $13.43 Million Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Howe & Rusling Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 12.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,553 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 3,848 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group makes up 1.2% of Howe & Rusling Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Howe & Rusling Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $13,432,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought 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 approximately $2,302,065. This trade represents a 28.57 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UNH stock opened at $518.10 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market cap of $473.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.43, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $436.38 and a one year high of $630.73. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $508.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $545.37.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly 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. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $101.60 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.83 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on UNH shares. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $650.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, January 17th. 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 research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. HSBC upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target 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. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $629.32.

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.