UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Sold by Covington Investment Advisors Inc.

Covington Investment Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 25,363 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 275 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises approximately 1.1% of Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $12,830,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UNH. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $511.57 per share, with a total value of $511,570.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,302,065. This trade represents 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 the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $625.00 to $610.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $642.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $629.32.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $515.89 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $471.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.28, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $630.73. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $508.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $545.16.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $101.60 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.83 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

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.