Bank of New Hampshire Cuts Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Bank of New Hampshire lowered its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 10,118 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 272 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises approximately 1.3% of Bank of New Hampshire’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Bank of New Hampshire’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $5,118,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 804 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $407,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 16.0% in the fourth quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida now owns 875 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $443,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. now owns 3,848 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,947,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 16.7% during the 4th quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC now owns 818 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $414,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kings Path Partners LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Kings Path Partners LLC now owns 3,300 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,669,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock traded up $2.77 on Tuesday, reaching $516.44. The stock had a trading volume of 270,340 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,976,355. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $558.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $561.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market cap of $475.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.62.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.56 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is presently 54.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on UNH shares. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $625.00 to $610.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $591.00 to $644.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $603.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $627.58.

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.