Financial Counselors Inc. Sells 1,310 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Financial Counselors Inc. cut its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 150,505 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 1,310 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group comprises 1.1% of Financial Counselors Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Financial Counselors Inc.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $76,135,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Pillar Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company's stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH traded down $0.25 during trading on Friday, reaching $515.47. 2,378,211 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,268,981. The firm has a market capitalization of $471.51 billion, a PE ratio of 33.26, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. The company's 50 day moving average is $508.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $544.24. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 week high of $630.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

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UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $101.60 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.83 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $650.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $694.00 to $660.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $629.32.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 4,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,302,065. This represents a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.