UnitedHealth Group (UNH) shares were down more than 4% in recent premarket activity after the Guardian reported Wednesday that the company paid nursing homes to help reduce hospital transfers and costs.

The insurance giant allegedly paid thousands of dollars in bonuses to nursing homes where it installed its own medical teams and pressured them to help cut care expenses for residents, the report said.

There have been several incidents where residents did not receive immediate hospital care when needed as a result of the practice, according to the report.

Earlier Wednesday HSBC (HSBC) downgraded UnitedHealth to a reduce rating from hold, and slashed its price target to $270 From $490.

"The U.S. Department of Justice investigated these allegations, interviewed witnesses, and obtained thousands of documents that demonstrated the significant factual inaccuracies in the allegations. After reviewing all the evidence during its multi-year investigation, the Department of Justice declined to pursue the matter," a spokesperson said to MT Newswires in an emailed response.

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