UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Receives $570.05 Average Price Target from Analysts

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and fifteen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $570.05.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on UNH. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $675.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $545.00 to $562.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH opened at $516.83 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $488.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $511.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. UnitedHealth Group has a one year low of $436.38 and a one year high of $554.70. The stock has a market cap of $475.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.59, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.55.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.50% and a net margin of 4.05%. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.26 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of UNH. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. CGC Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1,000.0% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% during the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 340.0% during the third quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 66 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.