Founders Financial Securities LLC Sells 3,559 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Founders Financial Securities LLC decreased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 43.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,560 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 3,559 shares during the quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,575,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter valued at $3,837,207,000. Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,572,193,000. Dodge & Cox lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 117.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 8,750,560 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,729,912,000 after purchasing an additional 4,730,192 shares during the period. Lone Pine Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter worth $528,273,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 33.8% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 6,191,871 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,904,372,000 after buying an additional 1,565,245 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH opened at $327.08 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $334.77 and a 200-day moving average of $318.74. The company has a market cap of $296.28 billion, a PE ratio of 17.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.43. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $234.60 and a one year high of $606.36.

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

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 8th were issued a dividend of $2.21 per share. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 8th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on UNH shares. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $406.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $317.00 to $409.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $433.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $378.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $385.54.

About UnitedHealth Group

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.