Hound Partners LLC Acquires New Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Hound Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,580 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $1,239,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Founders Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Founders Capital Management LLC now owns 982 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $324,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Kellett Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Kellett Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,746 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $576,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Successful Portfolios LLC raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Successful Portfolios LLC now owns 1,194 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $411,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Bell Investment Advisors Inc lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 14.4% during the first quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 246 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McLean Asset Management Corp increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 2,000 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $670,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on UNH shares. Piper Sandler set a $477.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Monday, July 20th. UBS Group raised their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $460.00 to $490.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $455.92.

UnitedHealth Group News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting UnitedHealth Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UnitedHealth’s latest quarter beat profit estimates and management raised full-year earnings guidance, reinforcing confidence that the business is recovering after earlier pressure. UnitedHealth’s earnings comeback hides risk Wall Street can’t price
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan reportedly increased its price target on UNH to $516, suggesting analysts see further upside following the improved earnings outlook. JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target to $516.00
• Positive Sentiment: UNH has also been highlighted in multiple stock-screening and momentum pieces as a “buy” or strong momentum name, which can add to near-term trading interest. Is Trending Stock UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH) a Buy Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: UnitedHealth is being widely watched by retail and institutional investors after the strong quarter, but some of the recent articles are primarily commentary rather than new company-specific developments. Is Trending Stock UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH) a Buy Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Even with the upbeat earnings update, investors are still focused on risk factors such as medical cost inflation and margin pressure across the managed-care sector, which could limit how far the rally extends. Can Humana Beat Q2 Earnings Estimates on Growing Premiums?

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $420.40 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $381.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $234.60 and a 52-week high of $461.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.78. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $408.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $345.63.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.94 by $1.44. The firm had revenue of $112.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $110.81 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 3.14%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.08 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 19.500-20.000 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 19.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $2.32 per share. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $9.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 59.72%.

UnitedHealth Group Profile

UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.

UnitedHealthcare is the company’s benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.