UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.28 EPS

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28, RTT News reports. The business had revenue of $99.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.50% and a net margin of 4.05%. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.26 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group updated its FY 2024 guidance to 27.500-28.000 EPS and its FY24 guidance to $27.50-28.00 EPS.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $485.57 on Thursday. UnitedHealth Group has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $554.70. The stock has a market cap of $447.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.28, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $489.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $515.38.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 11th were given a $1.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 45.97%.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total value of $451,127.82. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other UnitedHealth Group news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Power Corp of Canada purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $48,000. O Dell Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $74,000. Pacific Center for Financial Services purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $77,000. Finally, Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 84.0% during the 4th quarter. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. now owns 173 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on UNH shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $605.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $591.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $675.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $569.68.

About UnitedHealth Group

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.