Argent Advisors Inc. Has $1.13 Million Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Argent Advisors Inc. grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,238 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Argent Advisors Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,132,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $700.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $629.32.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,302,065. This represents a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $499.01 on Tuesday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 week high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of $456.45 billion, a PE ratio of 32.19, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $511.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $549.15.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The firm had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $101.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.83 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.19%.

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.