Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Now Covered by Guggenheim

Stock analysts at Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $208.00 price target on the health services provider’s stock. Guggenheim’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 16.39% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently commented on UHS. Stephens increased their price objective on Universal Health Services from $210.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $226.00 price target on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $271.00 to $249.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Universal Health Services from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $226.93.

Universal Health Services Trading Down 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE:UHS opened at $178.71 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $180.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $193.30. Universal Health Services has a one year low of $152.69 and a one year high of $243.25. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $11.62 billion, a PE ratio of 11.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.21.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $4.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.71. The business had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Universal Health Services will post 15.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Universal Health Services

In other Universal Health Services news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.16, for a total transaction of $179,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,916 shares in the company, valued at $1,418,230.56. This represents a 11.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Health Services

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Universal Health Services by 22.5% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 54,105 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $9,721,000 after acquiring an additional 9,946 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 255.3% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 6,345 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,138,000 after acquiring an additional 4,559 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 175.6% during the 4th quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,792 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $501,000 after purchasing an additional 1,779 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 0.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,197,537 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $274,248,000 after purchasing an additional 10,578 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC raised its stake in Universal Health Services by 43.3% in the fourth quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,176 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,467,000 after purchasing an additional 2,472 shares in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.