Jason Eric Evans Sells 20,400 Shares of Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) Stock

Surgery Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGRY) CEO Jason Eric Evans sold 20,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.47, for a total value of $254,388.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 920,386 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,477,213.42. The trade was a 2.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Jason Eric Evans also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, March 6th, Jason Eric Evans sold 11,462 shares of Surgery Partners stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.79, for a total value of $158,060.98.

Surgery Partners Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SGRY traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $12.39. The stock had a trading volume of 1,509,638 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,747,282. The stock has a market cap of $1.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.98 and a beta of 1.95. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 1.87. Surgery Partners, Inc. has a 12-month low of $12.25 and a 12-month high of $24.60.

Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.19). The firm had revenue of $885.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $866.54 million. Surgery Partners had a negative net margin of 2.35% and a positive return on equity of 1.28%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.44 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Surgery Partners, Inc. will post 0.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Surgery Partners announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 26th that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SGRY has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Surgery Partners from $18.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Surgery Partners from $28.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.36.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Surgery Partners

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State of Wisconsin Investment Board increased its position in shares of Surgery Partners by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. State of Wisconsin Investment Board now owns 151,504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,341,000 after buying an additional 668 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Surgery Partners by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 14,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,000 after acquiring an additional 909 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in Surgery Partners by 313.1% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 930 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Surgery Partners by 1.6% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 65,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,447,000 after acquiring an additional 1,021 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey increased its holdings in Surgery Partners by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 17,582 shares of the company’s stock worth $391,000 after acquiring an additional 1,176 shares during the period.

Surgery Partners Company Profile

Surgery Partners, Inc operates as a healthcare services provider specializing in the management and ownership of ambulatory surgery centers, surgical hospitals and multispecialty rehabilitation hospitals across the United States. Through its network of facilities, the company coordinates and delivers a broad range of outpatient surgical procedures in specialties such as orthopedics, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, gastroenterology, pain management and general surgery. Its integrated platform offers ancillary services including on-site imaging, laboratory testing, infusion therapy and physical, occupational and speech rehabilitation.

Since its establishment in 2010 and subsequent public listing in 2015, Surgery Partners has focused on strategic partnerships with physicians and health systems to expand access to cost-effective outpatient care.