Sentry Investment Management LLC Has $2.99 Million Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Sentry Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,679 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group accounts for 1.3% of Sentry Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $2,990,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter valued at $210,000. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 8.9% during the first quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 744 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 31.8% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 250,196 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $127,592,000 after buying an additional 60,300 shares during the last quarter. MAS Advisors LLC increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 10.8% during the first quarter. MAS Advisors LLC now owns 463 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Western Trust Bank acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter valued at about $875,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of UNH traded up $7.53 on Monday, hitting $446.73. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,863,672 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,270,147. The company has a market capitalization of $411.85 billion, a PE ratio of 18.74, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $554.70. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $492.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $516.34.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 12th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.98 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $94.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $92.13 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.39% and a net margin of 6.02%. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.34 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $1.88 per share. This represents a $7.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is 31.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $591.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $584.00 to $581.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. HSBC raised UnitedHealth Group from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $460.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $596.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $573.80.

UnitedHealth Group Profile

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.