Kentucky Retirement Systems Trims Holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,497 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 136 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $832,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Universal Health Services by 32,501.2% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 570,847 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $87,020,000 after acquiring an additional 569,096 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Health Services in the 4th quarter worth about $86,117,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 12,924.9% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 503,935 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $76,820,000 after purchasing an additional 500,066 shares in the last quarter. 8 Knots Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Universal Health Services during the fourth quarter valued at about $40,010,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Universal Health Services by 42.8% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 736,542 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $112,278,000 after buying an additional 220,823 shares in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Health Services

In other news, EVP Matthew Jay Peterson sold 15,141 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Nina Chen-Langenmayr sold 850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.11, for a total value of $180,293.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,985 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $421,038.35. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Matthew Jay Peterson sold 15,141 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.85, for a total transaction of $3,192,479.85. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,107,595.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,970 shares of company stock worth $4,653,535. Insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UHS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Universal Health Services from $200.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Universal Health Services from $247.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $200.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $224.92.

Universal Health Services Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:UHS opened at $238.02 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $15.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.17, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $119.90 and a 1 year high of $241.95. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $219.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $192.34.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The health services provider reported $4.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.37 by $0.94. The business had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.87 billion. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 6.22% and a return on equity of 14.91%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.53 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.34%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.78%.

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.