UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target Increased to $560.00 by Analysts at Barclays

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) had its price target raised by Barclays from $534.00 to $560.00 in a research note published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on UNH. Bank of America reaffirmed a buy rating and issued a $675.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, March 7th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Truist Financial reiterated a buy rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an outperform rating and set a $610.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $569.68.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH stock opened at $478.99 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $489.51 and its 200 day moving average is $515.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. UnitedHealth Group has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $554.70. The firm has a market cap of $441.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.28, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.54.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The business had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.26 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $1.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.57%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.97%.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,527,306.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of UnitedHealth Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Robbins Farley purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Richelieu Gestion SA purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its stake 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 valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 340.0% in the 3rd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 66 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.