Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Shares Sold by Consolidated Investment Group LLC

Consolidated Investment Group LLC cut its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 40.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). 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 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 76.4% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 187 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 45.4% in the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 253 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 42.8% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 267 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Universal Health Services in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC grew its position in Universal Health Services by 33.3% during the 1st quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 400 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Shares of Universal Health Services stock opened at $182.46 on Friday. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $119.90 and a twelve month high of $183.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.40. The firm has a market cap of $12.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.23. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $167.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.40.

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

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UHS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Universal Health Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $152.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $140.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $144.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Universal Health Services from $170.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Universal Health Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Universal Health Services news, CFO Steve Filton sold 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 68,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,162,563.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 15.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Universal Health Services Company 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.