Ferguson Wellman Dumps 155,436 UNH Shares in Q2

Key Points

• Sold 155,436 shares of UnitedHealth Group for $59.76 million.

• This trade represented 1.05% of Ferguson Wellman’s 13F reportable AUM.

• Post-trade holding: 33,063 shares valued at $10.31 million.

• UnitedHealth now comprises 0.18% of the fund’s total AUM.

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What happened

According to a SEC filing dated July 10, Ferguson Wellman Capital Management sold 155,436 shares of UnitedHealth Group(NYSE:UNH) during the quarter ending June 30, 2025, with transactions totaling $59.76 million. The fund’s remaining position stood at 33,063 shares worth $10.31 million as of June 30, 2025.

What else to know

Ferguson Wellman’s sale reduced UnitedHealth Group to 0.18% of its $5.68 billion 13F AUM.

Top five holdings as of June 30, 2025:

1. Microsoft (MSFT): $943.5 million (16.6% of AUM).
2. Alphabet Class A (GOOGL): $753.3 million (13.3% of AUM).
3. Nvidia (NVDA): $626.7 million (11% of AUM).
4. Apple (AAPL): $511.2 million (9% of AUM).
5. JPMorgan Chase (JPM): $441.7 million (7.8% of AUM).

Other things to know about UnitedHealth Group stock:

• It closed at $304.10 on July 11, 2025.
• The stock is trading down 41.5% over the past year as of July 14. It underperformed the S&P 500 by 52.8 percentage points over the same period.
• Forward price/earnings ratio of 13.59.
• Shares are 52.5% below their 52-week high as of July 9, 2025.

Company overview

Note: TTM data as of March 31, 2025.

Company snapshot

• Offers diversified healthcare products and services, including health benefit plans, care delivery, pharmacy benefits, and healthcare technology solutions.
• Generates revenue primarily through insurance premiums, healthcare services, and pharmacy benefit management, leveraging a multi-segment business model across UnitedHealthcare and Optum divisions.
• Serves national and public sector employers, government programs (Medicare, Medicaid), individuals, and healthcare organizations in the United States.

UnitedHealth Group is one of the largest healthcare companies in the United States, operating at scale across insurance, care delivery, and pharmacy benefit management. The company's integrated approach, combining health plans with technology-driven services, supports a broad customer base and recurring revenue streams. UnitedHealth Group's diversified business model and significant market presence provide resilience and competitive advantage within the healthcare sector.

Foolish take

UnitedHealth stock is among the worst performers in the S&P 500 so far in 2025. The healthcare giant has been in the headlines a lot this year, but all for the wrong reasons. Just days after slashing its earnings outlook for the full year, UnitedHealth withdrew its guidance in May, citing an unprecedented rise in medical costs for Medicare Advantage and challenges in its Optum Health segment, which provides pharmacy, patient care, and data and analytics services.

Worse yet, UnitedHealth’s CEO Andrew Witty abruptly resigned in mid-May, around the same time when the company was hit by several allegations. While The Wall Street Journal reported that UnitedHealth was under a criminal investigation by the Department of Justice for Medicare billing fraud, The Guardian reported the company was paying out secret bonuses to nursing homes to slash costs on hospital transfers for ailing patients.

As if UnitedHealth’s internal challenges weren’t enough, President Donald Trump dealt another blow by signing an executive order that could potentially bypass pharmacy benefit managers (PBM) to cut drug prices. UnitedHealth’s PBM, Optum Rx, has over 65,000 retail pharmacies and was the key revenue driver for the company in 2024, with its sales surging 15% year over year.

There’s a silver lining, though. UnitedHealth has refuted the allegations of fraud, appointed former CEO Stephen J. Hemsley to the CEO role with immediate effect, expects to return to growth in 2026, and is still confident of hitting 13% to 16% growth in earnings per share in the long term.

Glossary

• 13F reportable AUM: Assets under management that must be disclosed in quarterly SEC Form 13F filings by institutional investment managers.
• AUM (Assets Under Management): The total market value of investments managed by a fund or investment firm on behalf of clients.
• Dividend yield: Annual dividend payments divided by the current share price, expressed as a percentage.
• Forward price/earnings ratio: A valuation metric comparing a company's current share price to its expected future earnings per share.
• Pharmacy benefit management: A service that administers prescription drug programs for health plans, employers, and government agencies.
• TTM (Trailing Twelve Months): Financial data calculated for the most recent twelve-month period, often used to assess recent performance.
• Medicare: A U.S. federal health insurance program for people aged 65 and older, and certain younger individuals with disabilities.
• Medicaid: A U.S. government program providing health coverage to eligible low-income individuals and families.
• Integrated approach: A business strategy combining multiple services or segments to offer comprehensive solutions within one organization.
• Multi-segment business model: A structure where a company operates through several distinct divisions or lines of business.
• Care delivery: The provision of healthcare services directly to patients, including medical treatment and clinical care.
• Public sector employers: Organizations or agencies operated by government entities, such as federal, state, or local governments.
  

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Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Neha Chamaria has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Apple, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends UnitedHealth Group and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.