Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC Purchases 82 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,215 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $2,731,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of UNH. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John H. Noseworthy acquired 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $312.16 per share, for a total transaction of $93,648.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,063 shares in the company, valued at $1,892,626.08. This represents a 5.21% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO John F. Rex acquired 17,175 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $291.12 per share, with a total value of $4,999,986.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 203,796 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,329,091.52. This trade represents a 9.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders acquired 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of UNH opened at $303.89 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $399.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $479.36. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $248.88 and a 52 week high of $630.73. The firm has a market cap of $275.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The business had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $6.91 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $2.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on UNH shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $521.00 to $362.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. HSBC reissued a “reduce” rating and issued a $270.00 price target (down previously from $490.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. TD Securities reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $308.00 price target (down previously from $520.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $428.43.

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.