Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Raised to Buy at TD Cowen

TD Cowen upgraded shares of Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $283.00 price target on the health services provider’s stock, up from their previous price target of $220.00.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on UHS. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Universal Health Services from $200.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. StockNews.com cut shares of Universal Health Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $219.00 target price on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $236.00 to $274.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $200.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Universal Health Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.77.

Universal Health Services Stock Up 1.1 %

UHS stock opened at $236.67 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $15.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $229.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $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. Universal Health Services has a 12 month low of $119.90 and a 12 month high of $243.25.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The health services provider reported $4.31 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.53 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Universal Health Services will post 15.87 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Eileen C. Mcdonnell sold 2,535 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.55, for a total value of $531,209.25. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,343,844.15. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Universal Health Services news, Director Eileen C. Mcdonnell sold 2,535 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.55, for a total value 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 represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Matthew Jay Peterson sold 15,141 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.85, for a total transaction of $3,192,479.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 5,253 shares in the company, valued at $1,107,595.05. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,970 shares of company stock worth $4,653,535 over the last 90 days. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Universal Health Services

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Universal Health Services by 362.3% during 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 purchasing an additional 252,846 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 357.9% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 261,221 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $48,308,000 after buying an additional 204,178 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 1,191.8% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 215,215 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $39,267,000 after buying an additional 198,555 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC purchased a new position in shares of Universal Health Services during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,032,000. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Universal Health Services by 41.2% during the first 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 during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.