Sovereign Financial Group Inc. Sells 54 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Sovereign Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,083 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 54 shares during the quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,054,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% in the third 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 in the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter worth $32,000. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 132.1% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 65 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $543.76 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $500.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.42, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.62. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $554.45 and its 200-day moving average is $563.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $436.38 and a twelve month high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its 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%. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.56 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 54.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on UNH shares. Bank of America lowered their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $625.00 to $610.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $603.00 to $655.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $626.79.

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.