UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seventeen have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $626.84.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on UNH. Bank of America decreased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Hsbc Global Res lowered UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, October 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $675.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $591.00 to $644.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $505.86 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $465.53 billion, a PE ratio of 32.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.58. UnitedHealth Group has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a fifty day moving average of $563.16 and a 200-day moving average of $560.81.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.56 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were given a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 54.72%.

Institutional Trading of UnitedHealth Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UNH. Delta Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Delta Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,650 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $965,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 0.5% during the second quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 3,695 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,882,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. First PREMIER Bank increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 274 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $160,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Genesee Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.9% in the third quarter. Genesee Capital Advisors LLC now owns 990 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $579,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jmac Enterprises LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% during the third quarter. Jmac Enterprises LLC now owns 823 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. 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.