Clearstead Trust LLC Grows Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Clearstead Trust LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 17.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,695 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 1,861 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group makes up about 1.8% of Clearstead Trust LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Clearstead Trust LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $6,683,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bray Capital Advisors increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.5% during the third quarter. Bray Capital Advisors now owns 9,616 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,848,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 0.9% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,812,699 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $913,945,000 after buying an additional 16,850 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.7% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 759,789 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $383,078,000 after buying an additional 12,732 shares during the last quarter. James Hambro & Partners lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. James Hambro & Partners now owns 182,903 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $92,239,000 after acquiring an additional 19,564 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 22.9% in the third quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 2,553 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,287,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

NYSE:UNH traded down $0.52 on Friday, reaching $492.45. 2,487,811 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,130,659. The firm has a market cap of $453.09 billion, a PE ratio of 30.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.55. 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 stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $482.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $512.76. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $436.38 and a 12 month high of $554.70.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.63 by $0.28. 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%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.26 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $1.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNH has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $591.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. HSBC upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $460.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $545.00 to $562.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $570.05.

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.