UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Stock Position Trimmed by Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky reduced its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 16.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 204,264 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 38,898 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group makes up 1.0% of Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $119,429,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.3% during the second quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,964 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $1,000,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $546,000. James J. Burns & Company LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter worth $1,773,000. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Meadow Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,355 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $1,199,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 4.9% during the second quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 1,991 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $1,007,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays increased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $603.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. HSBC lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Hsbc Global Res lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $626.84.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNH opened at $565.39 on Wednesday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73. The stock's fifty day moving average is $586.36 and its 200 day moving average is $559.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $520.31 billion, a PE ratio of 36.83, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91.

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

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

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 issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.72%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding UNH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.