Meritage Portfolio Management Raises Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 6.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,848 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 988 shares during the period. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $8,343,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UNH. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Robbins Farley bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. CGC Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1,000.0% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 340.0% during the 3rd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 66 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 148.1% in the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 67 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. HSBC upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $460.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $675.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $570.05.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock traded up $1.93 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $495.79. 1,449,616 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,491,596. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $436.38 and a twelve month high of $554.70. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $486.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $514.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $456.17 billion, a PE ratio of 30.18, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.54.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.50% and a net margin of 4.05%. The business had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.26 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were given a $1.88 dividend. This represents a $7.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other UnitedHealth Group news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,977,233.31. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group 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.