UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Hits New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $420.00 to $466.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. UnitedHealth Group traded as high as $405.72 and last traded at $404.0410, with a volume of 2404359 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $399.47.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on UNH. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $370.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Mizuho increased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $410.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $340.00 to $373.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Truist Financial increased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $395.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $395.00 to $453.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $406.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total value of $284,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 17,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,320,775. This represents a 4.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased 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 during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 45,232,170 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $14,931,592,000 after buying an additional 1,119,834 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 22,591,042 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $7,457,723,000 after acquiring an additional 824,120 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 18,829,054 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $6,215,660,000 after purchasing an additional 680,077 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.6% during the 4th 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. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $348.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $323.61. The stock has a market cap of $367.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.64.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.76 by $0.47. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 14.65% and a net margin of 2.68%.The company had revenue of $111.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.20 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 18.250- EPS. On average, research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 18.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $2.32 per share. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.21. This represents a $9.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.77%.

About UnitedHealth Group

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.