Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Receives $226.14 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $226.14.

UHS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Universal Health Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 9th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $285.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Barclays upped their target price on Universal Health Services from $256.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They set a “sector weight” rating for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $228.00 to $198.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th.

Universal Health Services Trading Down 3.8 %

Shares of Universal Health Services stock opened at $183.08 on Thursday. Universal Health Services has a 52-week low of $150.11 and a 52-week high of $243.25. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $192.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $207.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.39.

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

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 3rd. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Health Services

In other Universal Health Services news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.15, for a total value of $308,516.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,123,770.85. This represents a 21.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through 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 and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empirical Finance LLC raised its stake in Universal Health Services by 1.1% in the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 5,704 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,306,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.0% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,238 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $512,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 14.4% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 516 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 31.6% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 283 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 2.3% in the third quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 3,032 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.