UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Given “Overweight” Rating at Cantor Fitzgerald

Cantor Fitzgerald restated their overweight rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) in a report released on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $591.00 price objective on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on UNH. Argus lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $601.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $614.17.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE UNH opened at $583.33 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $538.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.66, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.58. UnitedHealth Group has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $607.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a 50 day moving average of $580.50 and a 200-day moving average of $525.71.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.66 by $0.14. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The company had revenue of $98.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $98.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.14 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total value of $1,624,727.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 40.0% during the second quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Saxony Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Saxony Capital Management LLC now owns 530 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $270,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the second quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 3,124 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,591,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Fiduciary Group LLC grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 3,695 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,882,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 3,410 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,737,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. 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.