UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Sold by Northeast Financial Group Inc.

Northeast Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 23.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,403 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 1,043 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 0.7% of Northeast Financial Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Northeast Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,990,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth $208,000. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.5% during the third quarter. Nicollet Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,340 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,876,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,308 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $2,519,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. First Long Island Investors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. First Long Island Investors LLC now owns 106,373 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $62,194,000 after buying an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simplify Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 49.8% during the 3rd quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,372 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $11,911,000 after acquiring an additional 6,772 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Stephens dropped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $632.00 to $605.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $615.53.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:UNH traded down $0.92 on Friday, reaching $592.23. 3,423,919 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,888,996. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The business has a fifty day moving average of $582.84 and a 200-day moving average of $549.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $545.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.00 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. UnitedHealth Group's revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.56 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 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, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.72%.

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.