Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Has $147.78 Million Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. cut its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 280,707 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 3,429 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $147,784,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,941 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $8,919,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares during the period. Ascension Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $216,000. Bellecapital International Ltd. increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Bellecapital International Ltd. now owns 13,823 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $7,277,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 34,297 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $17,292,000 after acquiring an additional 1,884 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 326.0% in the 4th quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 213 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

In other UnitedHealth Group news, 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 $4,527,306.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other UnitedHealth Group news, 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 $4,527,306.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $451,127.82. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares in the company, valued at $16,977,233.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on UNH shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. TD Cowen decreased their price target 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. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $591.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. HSBC upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $460.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $570.05.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $495.35 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $485.84 and its 200 day moving average is $514.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $455.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.54. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $554.70.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 1.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.97%.

UnitedHealth Group Company 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.