Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) CAO Sells $54,157.50 in Stock

Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) CAO Andrew Brophy sold 2,490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.75, for a total value of $54,157.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 15,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $342,236.25. This represents a 13.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Healthcare Services Group Trading Up 0.0%

HCSG opened at $21.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.55 and a beta of 0.74. Healthcare Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $9.13 and a 12 month high of $22.98. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.97.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $466.68 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $467.24 million. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 16.04% and a net margin of 3.21%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.16 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Healthcare Services Group, Inc. will post 0.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. 8 Knots Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $56,527,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 240.1% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,496,835 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $22,497,000 after acquiring an additional 1,056,705 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 80.2% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,981,840 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,354,000 after acquiring an additional 882,213 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 183.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,278,993 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,223,000 after purchasing an additional 827,057 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CSM Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Healthcare Services Group during the 2nd quarter worth $8,864,000. 97.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group set a $25.00 price objective on Healthcare Services Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. William Blair upgraded shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Healthcare Services Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Healthcare Services Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.00.

About Healthcare Services Group

Healthcare Services Group, Inc (NASDAQ: HCSG) is a leading provider of support services to healthcare facilities across the United States. The company specializes in environmental services, including housekeeping and sanitation, as well as linen and laundry management. In addition, Healthcare Services Group offers dietary and nutrition services, catering to hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, assisted living communities and other long-term care providers.

Founded as a family-owned business in the late 1970s, the company completed its initial public offering in 1997.