Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC cut its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 5.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 42,794 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,246 shares during the period. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $14,777,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UNH. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sagard Holdings Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Islay Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 69.4% in the second quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 105 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kilter Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting UnitedHealth Group

Here are the key news stories impacting UnitedHealth Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Re-affirmed 2026 guidance and ACA subsidy developments support upside — bullish investors note UnitedHealth reiterated full‑year 2026 guidance and recent Senate action to extend ACA subsidies (though a veto was hinted at), removing a key downside risk to membership and revenue growth; some analysts/notes argue this sets the stock up to retake prior highs. UnitedHealth Could Re-Take Its All-Time High In 2026
• Positive Sentiment: New Milliman studies bolstering Medicare Advantage economics — UnitedHealth released commissioned actuarial work concluding Medicare Advantage is lower cost to the federal government and lower out‑of‑pocket for beneficiaries, giving UNH policy/PR ammunition to defend MA business and earnings. New Independent Studies: Medicare Advantage Delivers Greater Value
• Neutral Sentiment: Media and retail coverage — televised/influencer pieces and inclusion in dividend screens generate attention but are unlikely to move fundamentals near-term; useful for flow/interest context. Final Trades: Capital One, UnitedHealth, Regeneron and Alibaba The Dogs of the Dow
• Negative Sentiment: Senate report alleging aggressive Medicare‑advantage coding tactics hit sentiment — a U.S. Senate committee and major outlets (WSJ/Reuters) reported the company used aggressive methods to capture payment‑boosting diagnoses; the story prompted sell‑side commentary and intraday weakness as the alleged practices raise regulatory, legal and reimbursement risks. Senate report says UnitedHealth used aggressive tactics to boost medicare payments, WSJ reports UnitedHealth Medicare Senate Report (WSJ)

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on UNH. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $286.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $317.00 to $409.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 17th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $335.00 to $338.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $386.00 to $391.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $385.75.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of UNH opened at $334.00 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $302.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.42. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $234.60 and a fifty-two week high of $606.36. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $329.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $321.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $2.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $113.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $113.19 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 19.23% and a net margin of 4.04%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $7.15 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 8th were given a dividend of $2.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 8th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.14%.

UnitedHealth Group Profile

UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.

UnitedHealthcare is the company’s benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.