LPL Financial LLC Has $5.44 Million Holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

LPL Financial LLC decreased its holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 11.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,296 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 3,934 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $5,436,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UHS. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 22.5% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 54,105 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $9,721,000 after acquiring an additional 9,946 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in Universal Health Services by 255.3% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 6,345 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,138,000 after purchasing an additional 4,559 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 175.6% in the fourth quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,792 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $501,000 after purchasing an additional 1,779 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of 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. Finally, Vestcor Inc lifted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 1,436.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 54,070 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $12,383,000 after buying an additional 50,551 shares during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UHS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $271.00 to $249.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Universal Health Services from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $228.00 to $198.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $226.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Universal Health Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $228.38.

Universal Health Services Stock Up 0.4 %

UHS stock opened at $172.44 on Wednesday. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $152.69 and a 52 week high of $243.25. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $180.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $194.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $11.21 billion, a PE ratio of 11.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.21.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $4.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.71. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 6.66% and a return on equity of 15.75%. The company had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Universal Health Services’s payout ratio is presently 4.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Health Services

In other Universal Health Services news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.16, for a total transaction of $179,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,418,230.56. The trade was a 11.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

About Universal Health Services

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.