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

Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $224.92.

UHS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised 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. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $219.00 target price on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $183.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Universal Health Services from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $198.00 to $256.00 in a report on Friday, July 26th.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Shares of UHS opened at $215.68 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.39 billion, a PE ratio of 18.28, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.27. The company’s 50-day moving average is $227.69 and its 200-day moving average is $196.06. Universal Health Services has a fifty-two week low of $119.90 and a fifty-two week high of $243.25. 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 (NYSE:UHS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The health services provider reported $4.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.53 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Universal Health Services will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

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

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.37%. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,444 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.64, for a total value of $749,552.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,971 shares in the company, valued at $864,248.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Universal Health Services news, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.64, for a total transaction of $749,552.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $864,248.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Eileen C. Mcdonnell sold 2,535 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.55, for a total transaction of $531,209.25. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,343,844.15. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,970 shares of company stock worth $4,653,535. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Universal Health Services

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 32,501.2% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in 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 worth $76,820,000 after acquiring an additional 500,066 shares during the last quarter. 8 Knots Management LLC purchased a new position in Universal Health Services during the 4th quarter worth $40,010,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 42.8% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 736,542 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $112,278,000 after acquiring an additional 220,823 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 357.9% during 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

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.