Universal Health Services’ (UHS) “Neutral” Rating Reiterated at Robert W. Baird

Robert W. Baird reaffirmed their neutral rating on shares of Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) in a research report released on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $224.00 target price on the health services provider’s stock, down from their prior target price of $274.00.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on UHS. Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $208.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Universal Health Services from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $226.00 target price on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $228.00 to $198.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $224.92.

Universal Health Services Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of Universal Health Services stock opened at $175.30 on Tuesday. Universal Health Services has a fifty-two week low of $152.69 and a fifty-two 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. The company has a market capitalization of $11.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a fifty day moving average of $179.38 and a 200 day moving average of $192.04.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $4.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $4.11 billion during 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UHS. MML Investors Services LLC increased its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 18.6% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 2,030 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $465,000 after acquiring an additional 318 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Universal Health Services by 13.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 188,765 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $43,227,000 after purchasing an additional 22,369 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp increased its holdings in Universal Health Services by 16.3% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 2,870 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $657,000 after purchasing an additional 403 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Universal Health Services during the 3rd quarter valued at $271,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Health Services in the 3rd quarter worth $2,194,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Universal Health Services Company Profile

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.