First Foundation Advisors Decreases Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

First Foundation Advisors trimmed its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 8.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 27,042 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,450 shares during the quarter. First Foundation Advisors’ holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $14,163,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on UNH shares. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Raymond James Financial lowered UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Wolfe Research dropped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $501.00 to $390.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Baird R W lowered UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $312.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $392.29.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

NYSE UNH opened at $282.13 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $300.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $422.56. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $248.88 and a 1-year high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $255.93 billion, a PE ratio of 11.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.45.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a $2.21 dividend. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.13%. This is a boost from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is 37.02%.

Insider Activity

In other UnitedHealth Group news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $179,645.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 10,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,171,390. The trade was a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley purchased 86,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $288.57 per share, for a total transaction of $25,019,019.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 679,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,081,295.01. The trade was a 14.63% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768 in the last ninety days. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.