Hartford Financial Management Inc. Lowers Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Hartford Financial Management Inc. reduced its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,456 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 81 shares during the quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $2,254,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,065. This 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 this link. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $545.29 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The stock has a market cap of $501.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.62. The business’s 50 day moving average is $538.18 and its 200 day moving average is $565.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.83 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.64 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on UNH. Stephens increased 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. HSBC raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $694.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $629.32.

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.