Patrick Orr Sells 45,500 Shares of Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) Stock

Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) EVP Patrick Orr sold 45,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.54, for a total transaction of $934,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 44,615 shares in the company, valued at $916,392.10. The trade was a 50.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Healthcare Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of HCSG stock traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $20.22. 596,158 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 804,724. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.42 billion, a PE ratio of 24.66 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 has a 50 day moving average price of $19.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.64.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Healthcare Services Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. 8 Knots Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group during the third quarter worth $56,527,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 80.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,981,840 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,354,000 after purchasing an additional 882,213 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,883,225 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,309,000 after purchasing an additional 29,551 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 38.1% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,766,601 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,732,000 after purchasing an additional 487,608 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 240.1% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,496,835 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $22,497,000 after purchasing an additional 1,056,705 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on HCSG shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. UBS Group set a $25.00 price target on shares of Healthcare Services Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Macquarie Infrastructure restated a “buy” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a report on Monday, December 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” 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.