Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $226.14.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Universal Health Services from $222.00 to $211.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $275.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $219.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Friday, October 25th. KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $223.00 target price for the company.

Universal Health Services Stock Up 2.5 %

NYSE:UHS opened at $180.11 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Universal Health Services has a twelve month low of $149.02 and a twelve month high of $243.25. The company has a market cap of $11.88 billion, a PE ratio of 11.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.28. The company’s 50 day moving average is $204.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $208.01.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The health services provider reported $3.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.75 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $3.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.90 billion. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 6.66% and a return on equity of 15.75%. Universal Health Services’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.55 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services will post 15.88 EPS for the current year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 3rd. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Health Services

In related news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,614 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.15, for a total transaction of $308,516.10. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,123,770.85. This trade represents a 21.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UHS. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Universal Health Services by 362.3% during the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 322,626 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $59,663,000 after purchasing an additional 252,846 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 357.9% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 261,221 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $48,308,000 after buying an additional 204,178 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 408.2% during the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 140,561 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $25,994,000 after buying an additional 112,902 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 102.0% in the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 210,926 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $48,304,000 after acquiring an additional 106,517 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Universal Health Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $18,031,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.