UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Stock

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) had its price objective raised by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $410.00 to $460.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock. UBS Group’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 18.10% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on UNH. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $278.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Leerink Partners upped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $345.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $370.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Raymond James Financial upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $311.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $387.57.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 1.8%

UNH traded up $7.02 on Friday, hitting $389.50. 1,281,657 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,104,076. UnitedHealth Group has a 12 month low of $234.60 and a 12 month high of $404.15. The company has a market cap of $353.72 billion, a PE ratio of 29.39, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $324.87 and its 200-day moving average is $319.15.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.76 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $111.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.84 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 14.65% and a net margin of 2.68%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.20 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 18.250- EPS. Equities research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group will post 18.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total transaction of $284,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 17,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,320,775. This represents a 4.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 91,600,260 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,238,162,000 after buying an additional 995,210 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 45,232,170 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $14,931,592,000 after purchasing an additional 1,119,834 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 22,591,042 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $7,457,723,000 after purchasing an additional 824,120 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 18,829,054 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $6,215,660,000 after purchasing an additional 680,077 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 18,655,111 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $6,158,734,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155,162 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile

UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.

UnitedHealthcare is the company’s benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.