UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Updates FY24 Earnings Guidance

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) issued an update on its FY24 earnings guidance on Tuesday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of $27.50-28.00 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of $27.50. UnitedHealth Group also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 27.500-28.000 EPS.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

NYSE UNH opened at $493.16 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $488.97 and its 200-day moving average is $515.22. UnitedHealth Group has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $554.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $454.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.54.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.63 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $99.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $6.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.74 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a $1.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.52%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNH has been the subject of a number of research reports. Erste Group Bank reissued a hold rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Oppenheimer reissued an outperform rating and issued a $610.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. HSBC upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a reduce rating to a hold rating and set a $460.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stephens restated an overweight rating and issued a $605.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $569.68.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Trading of UnitedHealth Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $210,000. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 744 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $379,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 31.8% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 250,196 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $127,592,000 after acquiring an additional 60,300 shares during the last quarter. MAS Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. MAS Advisors LLC now owns 463 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $241,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Western Trust Bank bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $875,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.