UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Given Buy Rating at Truist Financial

Truist Financial reissued their buy rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) in a research report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $395.00 price objective on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $370.00.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Leerink Partners decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $410.00 to $345.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $415.00 to $385.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $411.00 to $409.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $391.00 to $327.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Evercore upgraded UnitedHealth Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $377.68.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $353.51 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $290.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $317.09. UnitedHealth Group has a twelve month low of $234.60 and a twelve month high of $438.85. The company has a market cap of $320.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.70, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.76 by $0.47. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 14.65% and a net margin of 2.68%.The firm had revenue of $111.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.20 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 18.250- EPS. Research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group will post 18.43 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a $2.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 91,600,260 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,238,162,000 after buying an additional 995,210 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 45,232,170 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $14,931,592,000 after buying an additional 1,119,834 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings 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. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 18,829,054 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $6,215,660,000 after purchasing an additional 680,077 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 18,655,111 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $6,158,734,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155,162 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More UnitedHealth Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting UnitedHealth Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and raised guidance — UNH reported Q1 adjusted EPS of $7.23 (vs. consensus ~$6.76) and revenue of ~$111.7B, and raised FY‑2026 adjusted EPS guidance to above $18.25, citing improved management of medical costs. This is the main catalyst for the rally. Business Wire — Q1 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and price‑target increases — Multiple firms (Argus, RBC, Oppenheimer, Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley, Jefferies, etc.) raised ratings or targets after the report, adding upward pressure as sell‑side momentum attracts buyers. 247wallst — Analyst Upgrades
• Positive Sentiment: AI & operational initiatives — Management flagged a meaningful AI investment (and Optum Real transaction scale), which investors view as a durable margin/efficiency tailwind if deployment scales as planned. That narrative supports higher multiple assumptions. Yahoo Finance — Q1 Deep Dive (AI)
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish options flow — Unusual activity: ~164k call options traded (≈30% above average), signaling short‑term bullish positioning from traders and institutional players.
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector sentiment spillover — UNH’s beat dragged peers higher (CVS, Humana, Centene); positive industry momentum can amplify the stock move but doesn’t change UNH’s fundamentals. Yahoo — Sector Impact
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing risks remain — Management warned of challenges around a Medicare obesity‑drug pilot and cautioned that medical‑cost dynamics are still the key risk; if costs reaccelerate, margins and guidance could reverse. Reuters — Medicare Obesity Drug Pilot Challenges

UnitedHealth Group Company 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.