Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.71 EPS

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The health services provider reported $4.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.71, Zacks reports. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. The company had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. Universal Health Services updated its FY 2025 guidance to 18.450-19.950 EPS.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

NYSE UHS opened at $168.12 on Friday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $11.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $184.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $205.32. Universal Health Services has a 52-week low of $152.68 and a 52-week high of $243.25.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio is 5.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on UHS shares. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $271.00 to $249.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $285.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 25th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $210.00 target price on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com lowered shares of Universal Health Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $226.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $225.29.

Insider Activity at Universal Health Services

In related news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,614 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.15, for a total transaction of $308,516.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,123,770.85. This trade represents a 21.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.