Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Receives Equal Weight Rating from Stephens

Stephens reaffirmed their equal weight rating on shares of Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) in a research note published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $185.00 price objective on the health services provider’s stock.

UHS has been the topic of several other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $208.00 to $203.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $170.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an underweight rating and issued a $156.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $182.64.

Universal Health Services Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE UHS opened at $166.06 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.38. Universal Health Services has a 52-week low of $119.90 and a 52-week high of $183.61. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $170.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $153.50. The stock has a market cap of $11.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.24.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The health services provider reported $3.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.56. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 5.57% and a return on equity of 13.34%. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Universal Health Services will post 13.34 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Steve Filton sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.82, for a total value of $6,188,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 68,785 shares in the company, valued at $12,162,563.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Universal Health Services

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Czech National Bank increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 45.8% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 10,861 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 3,411 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 10.8% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 28,456 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $3,578,000 after purchasing an additional 2,770 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 13.4% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 9,300 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,169,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 2.1% in the third quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,816 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the period. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.5% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 33,440 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $4,204,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Universal Health Services Company Profile

Universal Health Services, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates acute care hospitals, and outpatient and behavioral health care facilities. It operates through Acute Care Hospital Services and Behavioral Health Care Services segments. The company's hospitals offer general and specialty surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics, emergency room care, radiology, oncology, diagnostic and coronary care, pediatric services, pharmacy services, and/or behavioral health services.