UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Sold by BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. trimmed its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 21.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 392,316 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 108,140 shares during the quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $229,379,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of UNH. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 20.6% in the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 10,867 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $5,376,000 after acquiring an additional 1,857 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 4,196 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $2,076,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $75,000. Rodgers Brothers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc. now owns 842 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $417,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Guardian Capital LP boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Guardian Capital LP now owns 56,015 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $27,711,000 after buying an additional 477 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 4.1 %

NYSE:UNH opened at $600.50 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $552.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.12, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $582.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $551.60. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $7.00 by $0.15. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The firm had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.56 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group's quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 54.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. HSBC cut UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $591.00 to $644.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, KeyCorp started coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $675.00 target price for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $615.53.

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.

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