Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Stake Lessened by MQS Management LLC

MQS Management LLC lowered its holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 11.6% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 982 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 129 shares during the period. MQS Management LLC’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Chase Investment Counsel Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 2.6% in the third quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp now owns 16,502 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $3,779,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 174.3% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 41,623 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $9,532,000 after purchasing an additional 26,447 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 10.8% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 162,338 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $37,177,000 after purchasing an additional 15,827 shares in the last quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Health Services during the third quarter worth $426,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 70.6% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 476 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Universal Health Services from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Universal Health Services from $236.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on Universal Health Services in a report on Friday, October 11th. They set a “sector weight” rating for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Universal Health Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.14.

Universal Health Services Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:UHS opened at $201.69 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $13.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.29. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $221.18 and its 200-day moving average is $205.11. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $132.74 and a 52-week high of $243.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.39.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last issued 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 business had revenue of $3.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.90 billion. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 6.66% and a return on equity of 15.75%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.55 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Health Services announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the health services provider to repurchase up to 8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.