BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd Acquires Shares of 137,591 UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 137,591 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $42,924,000. UnitedHealth Group comprises about 1.6% of BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of UNH. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 685.7% in the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Sagard Holdings Management Inc. bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Islay Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Kilter Group LLC bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter worth $34,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $341.83 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $339.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $316.91. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $234.60 and a twelve month high of $606.36. The company has a market cap of $309.65 billion, a PE ratio of 17.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.43.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $2.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $113.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $113.19 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.04% and a return on equity of 19.23%. The company’s revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $7.15 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 8th will be issued a $2.21 dividend. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 8th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on UNH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $310.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $335.00 to $338.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Leerink Partners set a $410.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $267.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $385.54.

UnitedHealth Group 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.