Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Boosts Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 13.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 380,359 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 43,893 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 1.0% of Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $199,212,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 56,142.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,295,153 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,344,586,000 after purchasing an additional 8,280,404 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,846,764,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 90,729,585 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $47,519,620,000 after acquiring an additional 5,583,343 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 36.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,592,718 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,346,712,000 after acquiring an additional 2,301,010 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,503,671 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,807,527,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058,488 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 4.0%

Shares of UNH opened at $271.92 on Thursday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $234.60 and a twelve month high of $630.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $246.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $289.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $401.34.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.45 by ($0.37). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The company had revenue of $111.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.80 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $2.21 per share. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.30%.

Insider Activity

In other UnitedHealth Group news, CFO John F. Rex bought 17,175 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $291.12 per share, for a total transaction of $4,999,986.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 203,796 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,329,091.52. The trade was a 9.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley bought 86,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $288.57 per share, with a total value of $25,019,019.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 679,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,081,295.01. This represents a 14.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNH has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Raymond James Financial lowered UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Mizuho reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $515.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $355.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $360.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $366.52.

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.