Washington Trust Bank Sells 1,058 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Washington Trust Bank lessened its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 3.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 32,331 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,058 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group comprises about 1.8% of Washington Trust Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Washington Trust Bank’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $18,903,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UNH. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. Macroview Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% during 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. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Delos Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% during the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNH has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $591.00 to $644.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $481.00 to $647.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $597.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $615.53.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:UNH traded up $3.66 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $600.35. The company had a trading volume of 327,657 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,882,888. The firm has a market cap of $554.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.58. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $581.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $543.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $436.38 and a twelve month high of $608.63.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.56 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is presently 54.72%.

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.