Empirical Asset Management LLC Grows Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Empirical Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 142.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 5,901 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 3,465 shares during the quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $2,038,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of UNH. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Sagard Holdings Management Inc. purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Islay Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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: UnitedHealthcare remains a very large revenue engine — the unit’s revenues rose ~15.7% in 2025 (to roughly $345B), underlining scale and membership momentum that support long-term cash flow potential. UnitedHealthcare Under Pressure: Can UNH’s Core Business Rebound?
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-term market opportunity in healthcare finance solutions (digital payments, analytics, outpatient financing) could benefit Optum/UNH businesses and provide additional growth avenues beyond core insurance. Healthcare Finance Solutions Industry Report 2026-2035
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts note UNH has underperformed the Dow over the past year but remain cautiously optimistic — implying that some investors view current weakness as a buying opportunity if cost trends normalize. Is UnitedHealth Stock Underperforming the Dow?
• Negative Sentiment: Profitability has deteriorated: adjusted operating earnings at UnitedHealthcare fell sharply (~41% decline reported), driven by elevated medical costs and lower Medicare funding — a primary reason investors are cutting multiples. UnitedHealthcare Under Pressure: Can UNH’s Core Business Rebound?
• Negative Sentiment: Company guidance and subsequent analyst reactions: weak guidance following Q4 results prompted analysts to lower estimates and revise outlooks, increasing downside risk to near-term EPS expectations. Analysts Lower Expectations for UnitedHealth (UNH) Following Weak Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Share-price and valuation pressure: recent coverage highlights prolonged share weakness and valuation re-rating vs historical levels, which may keep sentiment negative until margin trends show clear improvement. A Look At UnitedHealth Group’s Valuation After Prolonged Share Price Weakness

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 3.0%

NYSE UNH opened at $273.92 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $314.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $325.73. The company has a market capitalization of $248.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.41. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $234.60 and a 12 month high of $606.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $2.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.02. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 2.69% and a return on equity of 14.79%. The business had revenue of $113.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $113.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.81 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.750- EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on UNH shares. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $400.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $418.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Leerink Partners lowered their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $410.00 to $345.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $372.13.

UnitedHealth Group Company 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.