QV Investors Inc. Acquires 16,780 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

QV Investors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 33.8% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 66,494 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,780 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises 3.2% of QV Investors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. QV Investors Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $33,863,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of UNH. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,468 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,352,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $158,000. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,710 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,427,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the period. Phocas Financial Corp. acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $242,000. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 40.8% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 19,298 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $10,160,000 after purchasing an additional 5,593 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE:UNH traded up $5.43 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $579.67. The stock had a trading volume of 2,339,815 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,247,247. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $524.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $505.89. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $591.54. The company has a market capitalization of $533.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.59.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.66 by $0.14. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The company had revenue of $98.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $98.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.14 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.34%.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on UNH shares. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $566.00 to $571.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $597.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $601.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $614.17.

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.