Bridges Investment Management Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Bridges Investment Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 302,339 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 4,075 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises approximately 2.1% of Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $152,941,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth about $37,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth about $57,000. DecisionPoint Financial LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 155.0% in the fourth quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 102 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 863.6% in the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 106 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $474.95 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $516.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $557.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $437.09 billion, a PE ratio of 30.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The business had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $101.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.83 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on UNH. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $650.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $629.32.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,302,065. The trade was a 28.57 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.