Manning & Napier Advisors LLC Invests $116.16 Million in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 276,681 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $116,156,000. UnitedHealth Group makes up approximately 1.5% of Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of UNH. Hyperion Capital Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $7,239,000. Granger Management LLC bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $330,000. SaddleRock Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter worth $7,140,000. Cetera Trust Company N.A purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter valued at $1,987,000. Finally, Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter worth about $31,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More UnitedHealth Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting UnitedHealth Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UnitedHealth’s recovery story remains a major catalyst. The stock has generated a roughly 37% yearly return and recovered about 80% from its 12-month low, suggesting improving investor confidence after a difficult period. The company still appears attractive as a long-term investment. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated’s Recovery Story
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results provide fundamental support: UnitedHealth reported $6.38 in EPS versus a $4.94 consensus estimate and revenue of $112.03 billion versus expectations of $110.81 billion. Fiscal 2026 EPS guidance remains $19.50-$20.00, helping reinforce confidence in earnings recovery. UnitedHealth earnings beat supports guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst comparisons favor UNH over Elevance Health, citing stronger earnings prospects, improving Medicare profitability, greater upside and a more favorable risk-reward profile. UnitedHealth versus Elevance
• Positive Sentiment: UnitedHealth was highlighted in a constructive managed-care industry outlook, which points to steady premium revenue, aging-population trends and business diversification as potential long-term supports. Managed-care industry outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: David Tepper’s Appaloosa Management sold its entire UnitedHealth position during the second quarter. The move may concern investors, but the accompanying analysis argues that UNH’s improving fundamentals could still make the sale a costly decision over the long term. David Tepper sold UnitedHealth shares
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 1,169 shares for approximately $456,000, reducing his direct holdings by 7.09%. He retains a substantial position, so the transaction is a modest bearish signal rather than evidence of a fundamental change. UnitedHealth CEO SEC transaction filing

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $287.00 to $453.00 in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $440.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $420.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $512.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $456.56.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 1.1%

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $400.83 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $413.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $359.04. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $255.96 and a 1-year high of $461.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $359.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.79, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.94 by $1.44. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 3.14%.The company had revenue of $112.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $110.81 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.08 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 19.500-20.000 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 19.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 14th will be paid a dividend of $2.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 14th. This represents a $9.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.72%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 1,169 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $390.00, for a total transaction of $455,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 15,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,977,920. The trade was a 7.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile

UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.

UnitedHealthcare is the company’s benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.