Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Has $64.58 Million Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 6.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 122,659 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 8,674 shares during the quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $64,576,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 25,220,234 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $12,715,790,000 after buying an additional 527,526 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,802,231,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 3.6% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,787,768 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,934,895,000 after acquiring an additional 341,749 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,984,853 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,143,004,000 after purchasing an additional 141,646 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 6.5% during the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 5,757,410 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,902,829,000 after purchasing an additional 352,710 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $675.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $566.00 to $571.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $545.00 to $562.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $570.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares in the company, valued at $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares in the company, valued at $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH traded down $5.52 on Thursday, reaching $515.83. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,463,947 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,168,878. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $554.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $474.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.64, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.55. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $488.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $511.06.

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, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $99.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were given a dividend of $1.88 per share. This represents a $7.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 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.