UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH Shares Sold by Westpac Banking Corp

Westpac Banking Corp lowered its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 13.9% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 18,548 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,996 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $5,019,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at $4,376,167,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 141.9% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,109,029 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,356,432,000 after buying an additional 2,410,128 shares during the period. Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 864.4% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 2,523,700 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $833,099,000 after acquiring an additional 2,262,006 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 87.5% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 3,916,041 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,294,367,000 after purchasing an additional 1,826,948 shares during the period. Finally, Lone Pine Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $528,273,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $436.19 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $396.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.07, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.80. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $234.60 and a 1-year high of $461.62. The business has a 50-day moving average of $406.35 and a 200-day moving average of $343.75.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.94 by $1.44. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 3.14%.The firm had revenue of $112.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $110.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.08 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 19.500-20.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 19.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $2.32 per share. This represents a $9.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.21. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total value of $284,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 17,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,320,775. This represents a 4.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting UnitedHealth Group

Here are the key news stories impacting UnitedHealth Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UnitedHealth was upgraded to Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), signaling improving earnings expectations and adding to bullish sentiment around the stock. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on UNH to $516 and reiterated an Overweight rating, reinforcing the view that the stock still has meaningful upside after its recent rally. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several articles highlighted UnitedHealth’s strong Q2 performance, including better-than-expected earnings, raised guidance, and a larger share buyback authorization, all of which support the bullish case. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Reports framed UNH as a defensive healthcare leader benefiting from market rotation away from AI stocks, with analysts also calling it a strong momentum name and a stable dividend pick. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: The House passed a bill focused on provider accountability and fraud prevention in federal health programs; the article noted UNH could be affected by tighter oversight, but the near-term stock impact is unclear. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler set a $477.00 price objective on UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Barclays boosted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $429.00 to $441.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Mizuho lifted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $470.00 to $493.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $455.92.

UnitedHealth Group 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.