American Century Companies Inc. Sells 789,151 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 26.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,224,580 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 789,151 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 0.7% of American Century Companies Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.24% of UnitedHealth Group worth $1,132,890,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UNH. Aveo Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 23.8% during the fourth quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,164 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,139,000 after buying an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,273 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,250,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the period. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 80.9% during the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 6,220 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,275,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,695,000. Finally, Wade G W & Inc. increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Wade G W & Inc. now owns 12,664 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $6,667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,413 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE:UNH opened at $589.75 on Thursday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $607.94. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $564.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $516.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $542.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.05, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.58.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The firm had revenue of $98.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.14 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on UNH. Argus boosted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $555.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $591.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $640.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $481.00 to $647.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $614.17.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,812,029.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at $16,812,029.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,507,748.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by 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.