World Investment Advisors Purchases 3,225 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

World Investment Advisors raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 7.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 44,800 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 3,225 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors' holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $22,662,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of UNH. Wallace Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.9% in the third quarter. Wallace Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,119 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $1,239,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 902 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $456,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,578 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $1,304,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC now owns 575 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $291,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Richwood Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,247 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $2,654,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company's stock.

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UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 3.4 %

UnitedHealth Group stock traded up $17.67 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $540.87. 6,454,806 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,243,146. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $494.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.89, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. The firm's 50 day moving average is $509.39 and its 200-day moving average is $542.82. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73.

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

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNH has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $694.00 to $660.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $650.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $642.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $629.32.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $511.57 per share, with a total value of $511,570.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,302,065. This trade represents a 28.57 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.