Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC Trims Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC lowered its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 175,913 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,029 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 1.3% of Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $88,988,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 132.1% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 65 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $511.57 per share, with a total value of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 4,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,302,065. This represents a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on UNH shares. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $650.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $627.74.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 1.1 %

NYSE UNH opened at $519.08 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $545.26 and a 200-day moving average of $564.10. The company has a market cap of $477.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.49, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $630.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The business had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $101.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.83 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.62%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

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.