Griffin Asset Management Inc. Purchases 21 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Griffin Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH – Get Rating) by 0.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,695 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $3,414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Outfitter Financial LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Advocacy Wealth Management Services LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 75.8% during the first quarter. Advocacy Wealth Management Services LLC now owns 58 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 100.0% during the first quarter. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 54.8% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 65 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

NYSE:UNH opened at $489.68 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $459.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.83. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $383.12 and a 1-year high of $553.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $496.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $490.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 14th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $5.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.40 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $80.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $78.77 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.86% and a return on equity of 24.74%. The business’s revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.31 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 21.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 28th. Investors of record on Monday, June 20th will be given a $1.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 16th. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. This represents a $6.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.35%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 36.12%.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. SVB Leerink increased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 19th. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $540.00 to $620.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 19th. Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday, June 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $575.00 target price for the company. Credit Suisse Group raised their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $564.00 to $595.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $555.73.

In related news, Director Richard T. Burke sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.96, for a total transaction of $1,197,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,215,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $581,936,400. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Frederick William Mcnabb III purchased 89 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 26th. The stock was bought at an average price of $504.32 per share, with a total value of $44,884.48. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 11,259 shares in the company, valued at $5,678,138.88. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile (Get Rating)

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a diversified health care company in the United States. It 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 well-being services to individuals age 50 and older addressing their needs for preventive and acute health care services, as well as services dealing with chronic disease and other specialized issues for older individuals; Medicaid plans, children's health insurance and health care programs; health and dental benefits; and hospital and clinical services.

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