UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target Raised to $338.00 at TD Cowen

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) had its price objective increased by TD Cowen from $335.00 to $338.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a hold rating on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on UNH. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $310.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 9th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $352.00 to $386.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Mizuho increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $300.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Bank of America upped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $397.12.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of UNH opened at $344.57 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $312.07 billion, a PE ratio of 17.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $342.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $331.10. UnitedHealth Group has a 1-year low of $234.60 and a 1-year high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $2.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.05. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 19.23% and a net margin of 4.04%.The business had revenue of $113.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $113.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $7.15 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th were paid a dividend of $2.21 per share. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.14%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 4.7% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 410,180 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $141,635,000 after purchasing an additional 18,586 shares in the last quarter. Ardent Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $700,000. Westfuller Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Delta Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.8% during the third quarter. Delta Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,479 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,547,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 26,570 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $9,175,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.