Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Has $21.38 Million Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. cut its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 5.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 61,930 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 3,823 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $21,384,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNH. Bayforest Capital Ltd lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 685.7% in the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Sagard Holdings Management Inc. acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Islay Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Nova Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 339.1% during the 1st quarter. Nova Wealth Management Inc. now owns 101 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $328.85 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company has a market cap of $297.88 billion, a PE ratio of 17.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50-day moving average of $333.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $319.23. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $234.60 and a 1-year high of $606.36.

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

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 8th were given a dividend of $2.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 8th. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 46.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $333.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Leerink Partners set a $410.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $317.00 to $409.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $310.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $300.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $385.54.

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.