Magnetar Financial LLC Acquires 39,988 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Magnetar Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 124.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 72,227 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 39,988 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $36,537,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $511.57 per share, with a total value of $511,570.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,065. The trade was a 28.57 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $503.05 on Thursday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $630.73. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $510.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $548.22. The company has a market capitalization of $460.14 billion, a PE ratio of 32.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $101.60 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.83 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 54.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNH has been the subject of several analyst reports. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $650.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $694.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $642.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $629.32.

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.