UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $524.70, but opened at $582.17. UnitedHealth Group shares last traded at $565.09, with a volume of 1,799,932 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on UNH. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. HSBC upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $595.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Mizuho lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $610.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $632.85.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $548.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $512.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $542.03.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The business had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $101.60 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $5.83 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is 54.19%.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $511.57 per share, with a total value of $511,570.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,302,065. The trade was a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.