Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc Sells 3,911 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc trimmed its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 9.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,189 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 3,911 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 5.3% of Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $21,159,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% in the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Macroview Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% during 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 during the period. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC increased 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 worth $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.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 2.5 %

NYSE UNH opened at $561.10 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $586.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $559.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market cap of $516.37 billion, a PE ratio of 36.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.58. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $436.38 and a one year high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.63% and a return on equity of 26.37%. The business had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.56 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on UNH. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $603.00 to $655.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $626.84.

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.