Analysts Set Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) PT at $226.14

Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $226.14.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $228.00 to $198.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Universal Health Services from $256.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Universal Health Services from $275.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com downgraded Universal Health Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. 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 on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Shares of UHS opened at $183.50 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $191.66 and a 200-day moving average of $207.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.28. The company has a market capitalization of $12.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.30. Universal Health Services has a 1 year low of $150.11 and a 1 year high of $243.25.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The health services provider reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.75 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.96 billion for 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%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.55 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Universal Health Services news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,614 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were 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 owns 5,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,123,770.85. This trade represents a 21.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Universal Health Services

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UHS. HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Universal Health Services in the fourth quarter worth about $225,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 43.2% in the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 40,303 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $7,231,000 after purchasing an additional 12,163 shares during the period. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Universal Health Services by 63.6% in the fourth quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,438 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $617,000 after purchasing an additional 1,336 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in Universal Health Services by 63.7% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 2,884 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $517,000 after purchasing an additional 1,122 shares during the period. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new stake in Universal Health Services in the fourth quarter worth $72,000. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.