Middleton & Co. Inc. MA Reduces Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Middleton & Co. Inc. MA decreased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 0.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 28,617 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 89 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for 1.8% of Middleton & Co. Inc. MA’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $16,732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Macroview Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% in the 2nd quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 54 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% in the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% in the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNH opened at $564.56 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $521.33 billion, a PE ratio of 36.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.58. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $583.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $537.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.88. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $436.38 and a 12 month high of $608.63.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) 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 last year, the company posted $6.56 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 54.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on UNH. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. HSBC downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $625.00 price objective (down previously from $640.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America reduced their price objective 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, UBS Group cut their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $615.53.

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.