Hancock Whitney Corp Sells 878 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Hancock Whitney Corp lowered its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 9.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,595 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 878 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $4,348,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter valued at $341,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,778,636 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,039,933,000 after purchasing an additional 180,479 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 635 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $371,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3.7% in the third quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 1,275 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $746,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. Finally, Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth $900,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

NYSE:UNH opened at $424.70 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $504.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $536.14. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $417.12 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83. The company has a market cap of $388.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The company had revenue of $109.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.91 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on UNH shares. Erste Group Bank raised UnitedHealth Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Barclays lowered their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $642.00 to $560.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $660.00 to $580.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $540.00 price objective (down previously from $635.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $603.05.

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.