Sentry Investment Management LLC Lowers Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Sentry Investment Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 42.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,983 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,184 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group makes up approximately 0.7% of Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,509,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. DecisionPoint Financial LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 155.0% in the 4th quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 102 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth approximately $57,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 1.1 %

NYSE:UNH opened at $461.09 on Tuesday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 week high of $630.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $518.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $559.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $424.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $101.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $5.83 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $511.57 per share, with a total value of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,065. This represents a 28.57 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNH has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stephens lifted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Hsbc Global Res upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $625.00 to $610.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $629.32.

UnitedHealth Group Profile

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.