UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Acquired by Columbia Asset Management

Columbia Asset Management grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 811 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Columbia Asset Management’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $413,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Macroview Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% in the 2nd quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 54 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% in the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 40.0% in the 2nd quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total value of $1,624,727.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at $16,812,029.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $595.50 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $607.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $549.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $557.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $514.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $98.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.66% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.14 EPS. Equities analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.67 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 51.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $597.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Baird R W upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $640.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $601.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $481.00 to $647.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $614.17.

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.