UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target Raised to $655.00

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) had its price target upped by Barclays from $603.00 to $655.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock.

UNH has been the subject of several other reports. StockNews.com cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Stephens cut their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $632.00 to $605.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America lowered their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $625.00 price target (down from $640.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $618.26.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $610.53 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $585.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $556.08. UnitedHealth Group has a twelve month low of $436.38 and a twelve month high of $630.73. The company has a market capitalization of $561.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.77, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.58.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.56 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.72%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Delta Financial Group Inc. increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1.0% during the third quarter. Delta Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,650 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $965,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the period. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 40.0% during the second quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Saxony Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Saxony Capital Management LLC now owns 530 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $270,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 3,124 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,591,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Group LLC raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.5% in the second quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 3,695 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,882,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

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.