UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Upgraded at Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $642.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, HSBC raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $632.85.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of UNH opened at $456.10 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $512.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $540.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. UnitedHealth Group has a fifty-two week low of $438.50 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73. The company has a market cap of $417.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.43, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.29 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.56 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.91 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.