Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Price Target Raised to $183.00

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) had its price target raised by research analysts at TD Cowen from $181.00 to $183.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “hold” rating on the health services provider’s stock. TD Cowen’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 7.67% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. UBS Group upped their target price on Universal Health Services from $152.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Universal Health Services from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Universal Health Services from $144.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Universal Health Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Universal Health Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $182.79.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Shares of UHS stock traded up $0.85 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $169.97. The company had a trading volume of 122,897 shares, compared to its average volume of 582,101. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $170.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.24. Universal Health Services has a 52 week low of $119.90 and a 52 week high of $183.61.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The health services provider reported $3.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.56. The business had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 13.34% and a net margin of 5.57%. Universal Health Services’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.34 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Universal Health Services will post 13.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Universal Health Services

In related news, CFO Steve Filton sold 35,000 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.82, for a total value of $6,188,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 68,785 shares in the company, valued at $12,162,563.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Universal Health Services

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UHS. Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 45.8% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 10,861 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,366,000 after buying an additional 3,411 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 28,456 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $3,578,000 after purchasing an additional 2,770 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 9,300 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,169,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 33,440 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $4,204,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. raised its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 9,842 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 356 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

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.