Syon Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH – Free Report) by 15.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 9,624 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 1,255 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $3,177,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 91,600,260 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,238,162,000 after acquiring an additional 995,210 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 22,591,042 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $7,457,723,000 after buying an additional 824,120 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 18,655,111 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $6,158,734,000 after buying an additional 1,155,162 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth $4,376,167,000. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 126.9% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,042,049 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,503,419,000 after buying an additional 7,293,009 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.
Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group
In other news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total transaction of $284,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 17,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,320,775. This trade represents a 4.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Key Headlines Impacting UnitedHealth Group
- Positive Sentiment: Bank of America upgraded UnitedHealth Group to Buy and raised its price target to $450, citing improving medical cost trends and a better risk/reward setup heading into earnings. Article link
- Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley also lifted its price target on UNH to $453 and kept an Overweight rating, reinforcing the view that sentiment is improving. Article link
- Positive Sentiment: UnitedHealth raised its quarterly dividend by 5% to $2.32 per share, extending its long streak of annual dividend increases and signaling financial strength. Article link
- Positive Sentiment: Healthcare stocks, including UnitedHealth, are benefiting from a broader sector rebound as investors seek defensive stability and rotate out of more volatile areas of the market. Article link
- Neutral Sentiment: Recent coverage notes that UNH has already recovered sharply year to date, outpacing the broader market and its industry peer group. Article link
- Negative Sentiment: Some articles continue to highlight ongoing concerns around rising medical costs, managed-care scrutiny, and the stock’s earlier challenges, which could limit upside if operating trends worsen. Article link
UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance
UNH stock opened at $400.61 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market cap of $363.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.64. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $348.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $323.59. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $234.60 and a 52 week high of $404.15.
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.76 by $0.47. The business had revenue of $111.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.84 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 14.65%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $7.20 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 18.250- EPS. Research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 18.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $2.32 dividend. This represents a $9.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.21. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 66.77%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of analysts have recently commented on UNH shares. Leerink Partners boosted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $345.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. HC Wainwright set a $492.00 price target on UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $385.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $389.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $361.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $404.42.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on UNH
UnitedHealth Group Profile
UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.
UnitedHealthcare is the company’s benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.
See Also
- Five stocks we like better than UnitedHealth Group
- Samsara Just Answered The AI Question—Is Wall Street Ready To Listen?
- IREN’s 800MW Bet Flips the AI Power Switch
- CrowdStrike Earnings Beat Sparks Selloff—Buy the Dip?
- Tesla’s EV Rebound Leaves Rivian and Lucid Facing a Tougher Investor Test
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding UNH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for UnitedHealth Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for UnitedHealth Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
