Cetera Investment Advisers Lowers Stock Position in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Cetera Investment Advisers lowered its stake in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 39.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,331 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 3,413 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $986,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UHS. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Universal Health Services by 26.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,109 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,998,000 after buying an additional 2,756 shares during the period. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in Universal Health Services during the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Universal Health Services by 34.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 360 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in Universal Health Services during the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new position in Universal Health Services during the first quarter worth about $3,133,000. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on UHS shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $200.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $236.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $200.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Universal Health Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of Universal Health Services from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $198.00 to $256.00 in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Five 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Universal Health Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $229.77.

Universal Health Services Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:UHS opened at $234.10 on Friday. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $119.90 and a 52-week high of $243.25. The stock has a market cap of $15.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.84, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $228.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $198.55.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The health services provider reported $4.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.37 by $0.94. The company had revenue of $3.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.87 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 6.22%. Universal Health Services’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.53 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.87 EPS for the current year.

Universal Health Services declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the health services provider to buy up to 8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Universal Health Services news, Director Eileen C. Mcdonnell sold 2,535 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.55, for a total value of $531,209.25. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 6,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,343,844.15. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Eileen C. Mcdonnell sold 2,535 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.55, for a total transaction of $531,209.25. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,343,844.15. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Matthew Jay Peterson sold 15,141 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.85, for a total value of $3,192,479.85. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,107,595.05. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,970 shares of company stock worth $4,653,535. 16.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.