Value Partners Investments Inc. Has $2.19 Million Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Value Partners Investments Inc. decreased its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 63.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,332 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 7,434 shares during the quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $2,191,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 902 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $456,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,578 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,304,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC now owns 575 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,247 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,654,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 44 Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,309 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $662,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.8 %

UNH opened at $599.10 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $548.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.65, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $438.50 and a twelve month high of $630.73. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $512.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $541.80.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $101.60 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.83 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNH has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $642.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. HSBC upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $700.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Twenty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $632.85.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,065. This trade represents a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.