Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 783,143 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 176,543 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group comprises about 1.4% of Lord Abbett & CO. LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned about 0.09% of UnitedHealth Group worth $457,888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% during the second quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 54 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the period. West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
A number of research firms have recently commented on UNH. HSBC cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Stephens increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $591.00 to $644.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $626.84.
View Our Latest Analysis on UnitedHealth Group
Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $520.68 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 week high of $630.73. The business's 50 day moving average price is $581.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $559.39. The firm has a market cap of $479.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.58.
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.56 EPS. The company's revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current year.
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is currently 54.72%.
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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