BDF Gestion Buys 2,002 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

BDF Gestion raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,050 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 2,002 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group comprises approximately 1.4% of BDF Gestion's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. BDF Gestion's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $15,201,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its stake 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 worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 132.1% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 65 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price 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 trade represents a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock traded up $7.19 during trading on Thursday, hitting $545.29. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,923,944 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,583,729. The stock has a market cap of $501.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 week high of $630.73. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $538.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $565.09. 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.83 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $629.32.

UnitedHealth Group Company 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.