PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Grows Holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 8,518 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $1,951,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 81.0% during the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,087 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $2,997,000 after purchasing an additional 5,856 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new stake in Universal Health Services in the 3rd quarter worth about $323,000. Quest Partners LLC grew its holdings in Universal Health Services by 348,133.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 10,447 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $2,392,000 after buying an additional 10,444 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 2,101.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 101,188 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $23,173,000 after acquiring an additional 96,591 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 541.1% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 24,469 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $5,604,000 after acquiring an additional 20,652 shares during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $223.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $275.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Universal Health Services from $200.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $219.00 price target on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Universal Health Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Universal Health Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.50.

Universal Health Services Trading Up 3.5 %

UHS opened at $206.13 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $217.31 and its 200-day moving average is $206.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $133.70 and a 52-week high of $243.25.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The health services provider reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.75 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.90 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.55 EPS. Analysts expect that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.39%. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.32%.

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.