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

Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the fifteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $228.38.

A number of research firms have recently commented on UHS. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Universal Health Services from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $226.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $228.00 to $198.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Wednesday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stephens lifted their price objective on Universal Health Services from $210.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.16, for a total transaction of $179,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,916 shares in the company, valued at $1,418,230.56. The trade was a 11.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Health Services

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,675,182 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $838,821,000 after buying an additional 44,099 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 0.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,724,075 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $623,840,000 after acquiring an additional 17,527 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Universal Health Services by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,713,572 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $306,776,000 after acquiring an additional 52,042 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Universal Health Services by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,241,340 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $222,721,000 after acquiring an additional 253,385 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Universal Health Services by 0.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,197,537 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $274,248,000 after purchasing an additional 10,578 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Universal Health Services Stock Performance

UHS opened at $186.11 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $181.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $197.19. Universal Health Services has a 1 year low of $152.69 and a 1 year high of $243.25. The stock has a market cap of $12.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.28.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $4.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.43%. Universal Health Services’s payout ratio is 4.75%.

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.