Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 366,532 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Clearbridge Investments LLC trimmed its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 7.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,333,891 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 366,532 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises about 1.8% of Clearbridge Investments LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned 0.47% of UnitedHealth Group worth $2,192,342,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $341,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 11.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,778,636 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $1,039,933,000 after acquiring an additional 180,479 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 129.7% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 1,029,540 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $601,951,000 after purchasing an additional 581,324 shares during the last quarter. L.M. Kohn & Company lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1.6% during the third quarter. L.M. Kohn & Company now owns 5,037 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $2,945,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter valued at about $4,522,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

NYSE UNH traded down $0.70 on Wednesday, reaching $522.42. 1,321,696 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,261,516. The firm has a market cap of $477.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $509.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $542.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83.

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

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 54.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on UNH. 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 research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays lowered their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $642.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $625.00 to $610.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $700.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $595.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $629.32.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,065. This represents a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.