Consolidated Investment Group LLC Sells 12,000 Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Consolidated Investment Group LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 40.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 17,700 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 12,000 shares during the period. Consolidated Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $2,698,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UHS. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,856,010 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,138,729,000 after buying an additional 146,820 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 2.3% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 5,026,512 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $728,594,000 after acquiring an additional 113,259 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,398,974 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $427,353,000 after purchasing an additional 134,122 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Universal Health Services by 48.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,967,220 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $247,339,000 after purchasing an additional 638,166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Universal Health Services by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,707,708 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $214,710,000 after purchasing an additional 195,650 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Health Services

In related news, CFO Steve Filton sold 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was 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 directly owns 68,785 shares in the company, valued at $12,162,563.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 15.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on UHS. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Universal Health Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $148.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $152.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $144.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Universal Health Services from $140.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Universal Health Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $176.29.

Universal Health Services Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:UHS opened at $182.46 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $119.90 and a 12-month high of $183.61. The company has a market cap of $12.26 billion, a PE ratio of 17.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $167.42 and a 200 day moving average of $147.40.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The health services provider reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.66 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 12.08% and a net margin of 5.03%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.02 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 13.39 EPS for the current year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Universal Health Services’s payout ratio is currently 7.80%.

Universal Health Services 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.