UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) is Sanders Capital LLC’s 8th Largest Position

Sanders Capital LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,258,593 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 61,991 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for 3.9% of Sanders Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Sanders Capital LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $2,660,112,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,065. The trade was a 28.57 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

NYSE UNH opened at $599.10 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $630.73. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $512.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $542.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $548.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.83 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities 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 was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $700.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, January 17th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $650.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, January 17th. HSBC raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $610.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $632.85.

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.