Swiss National Bank Has $1.60 Billion Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Swiss National Bank increased its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 0.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,731,961 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,100 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group makes up 1.0% of Swiss National Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Swiss National Bank owned 0.30% of UnitedHealth Group worth $1,597,323,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 20.6% during the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 10,867 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $5,376,000 after buying an additional 1,857 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 4,196 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,076,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. Connors Investor Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter worth about $201,000. Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 314.3% during the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 6,073 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $3,004,000 after buying an additional 4,607 shares during the period. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,923 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,446,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $592.23 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $582.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $549.52. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $436.38 and a one year high of $630.73. The firm has a market cap of $545.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.58.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.56 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNH has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res cut UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Stephens cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $632.00 to $605.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. KeyCorp started coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $675.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $615.53.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile

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.