Piper Sandler Has Lowered Expectations for UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Stock Price

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) had its target price dropped by Piper Sandler from $605.00 to $600.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock. Piper Sandler’s price target suggests a potential upside of 16.96% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Hsbc Global Res lowered UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $591.00 to $644.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $628.37.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $513.00 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $560.86 and a 200 day moving average of $560.03. UnitedHealth Group has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $472.11 billion, a PE ratio of 33.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.62.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.00 by $0.15. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.14 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.56 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter valued at $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 132.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 65 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

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.