Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $225.50.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on UHS. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $256.00 to $271.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Universal Health Services from $236.00 to $274.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Universal Health Services in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $223.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp initiated coverage on Universal Health Services in a report on Friday, October 11th. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Universal Health Services from $222.00 to $211.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Universal Health Services news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,614 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.15, for a total value of $308,516.10. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,879 shares in the company, valued at $1,123,770.85. The trade was a 21.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in UHS. Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Health Services in the third quarter worth about $32,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Universal Health Services by 1,284.6% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 180 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Health Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Health Services during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 414.3% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 180 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Universal Health Services Stock Up 0.5 %

Universal Health Services stock opened at $187.40 on Friday. Universal Health Services has a 12 month low of $147.33 and a 12 month high of $243.25. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $207.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $208.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $12.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.46, a PEG ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.28.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The health services provider reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.75 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $3.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. Universal Health Services’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.55 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Universal Health Services will post 15.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 3rd. 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.