UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays raised their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 8th. HSBC upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $580.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $545.00 to $562.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $579.74.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $509.26 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $554.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $468.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.13, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $498.34 and a 200-day moving average of $501.96.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The company had revenue of $99.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.57 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UNH. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1,000.0% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% during the first 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. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 148.1% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 67 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

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.