Stephens Lowers UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target to $605.00

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) had its price target cut by equities researchers at Stephens from $632.00 to $605.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock. Stephens’ target price would suggest a potential upside of 6.89% from the company’s current price.

UNH has been the subject of several other research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $481.00 to $647.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, October 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $675.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $591.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $615.16.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $566.00 on Wednesday. UnitedHealth Group has a 12 month low of $436.38 and a 12 month high of $608.63. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $584.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $533.07. The firm has a market cap of $522.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $6.56 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of UnitedHealth Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UNH. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Macroview Investment Management LLC lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% during the second quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 54 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Delos Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% during the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.