Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Research Coverage Started at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued an equal weight rating and a $200.00 price target on the health services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on UHS. Stephens lifted their price objective on Universal Health Services from $210.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $226.00 price target on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $228.00 to $198.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $275.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $271.00 to $249.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Universal Health Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $228.38.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Universal Health Services stock opened at $186.11 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $181.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $197.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $12.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.32. Universal Health Services has a 12-month low of $152.69 and a 12-month high of $243.25.

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

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 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 transaction of $179,160.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,418,230.56. This represents a 11.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Health Services

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Choreo LLC raised its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 1,822 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $325,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in Universal Health Services by 14.4% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 516 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. boosted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 3,060 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC raised its stake in Universal Health Services by 18.1% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 456 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,266 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. 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.