UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Trading 2.2% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) shares rose 2.2% during mid-day trading on Monday after Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on the stock from $317.00 to $409.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. UnitedHealth Group traded as high as $365.57 and last traded at $364.31. Approximately 5,955,534 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 12,539,346 shares. The stock had previously closed at $356.60.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $353.00 to $317.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $400.00 to $325.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $198.00 price target (down previously from $312.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $379.00 to $433.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $385.13.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 685.7% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Sagard Holdings Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Islay Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 416.7% in the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 62 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 2.2%

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $331.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $341.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $329.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by ($0.37). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The company had revenue of $111.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.80 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 16.000- EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th were given a dividend of $2.21 per share. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is presently 38.30%.

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.