Heartland Bank & Trust Co Buys 539 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Heartland Bank & Trust Co lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 20.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,209 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 0.9% of Heartland Bank & Trust Co’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Heartland Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,623,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Delta Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 1.0% in the third quarter. Delta Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,650 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $965,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. First PREMIER Bank raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 274 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $160,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Genesee Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Genesee Capital Advisors LLC now owns 990 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $579,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Jmac Enterprises LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% during the third quarter. Jmac Enterprises LLC now owns 823 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Powers Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Powers Advisory Group LLC now owns 418 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNH opened at $543.41 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $500.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.06, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $630.73. The business has a 50 day moving average of $541.04 and a 200 day moving average of $564.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $101.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.83 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on UNH shares. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $625.00 to $610.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. HSBC raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $627.74.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,302,065. This trade represents a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.