Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Upgraded at StockNews.com

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on UHS. Baird R W raised shares of Universal Health Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $236.00 to $274.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Friday, October 11th. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $189.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Universal Health Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $229.77.

Universal Health Services Stock Up 1.1 %

UHS stock opened at $236.67 on Friday. Universal Health Services has a 52-week low of $119.90 and a 52-week high of $243.25. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $229.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $198.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.27.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The health services provider reported $4.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.37 by $0.94. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 6.22% and a return on equity of 14.91%. The business had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.53 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services will post 15.87 EPS for the current year.

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

Insider Transactions at Universal Health Services

In related news, EVP Matthew Jay Peterson sold 15,141 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.85, for a total transaction of $3,192,479.85. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,253 shares in the company, valued at $1,107,595.05. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Matthew Jay Peterson sold 15,141 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.85, for a total transaction of $3,192,479.85. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,253 shares in the company, valued at $1,107,595.05. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.64, for a total value of $749,552.16. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,971 shares in the company, valued at $864,248.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 21,970 shares of company stock worth $4,653,535. Company insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Health Services

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 0.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,099,282 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,295,335,000 after purchasing an additional 57,036 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 0.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 486,438 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $89,957,000 after purchasing an additional 2,620 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 41.2% in the 1st quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 455,773 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $83,160,000 after acquiring an additional 132,942 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 362.3% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 322,626 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $59,663,000 after acquiring an additional 252,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 357.9% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 261,221 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $48,308,000 after acquiring an additional 204,178 shares in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.