Freestone Grove Partners LP Acquires New Position in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new position in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 229,378 shares of the health services provider's stock, valued at approximately $41,155,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP owned 0.35% of Universal Health Services at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of UHS. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 22.5% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 54,105 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $9,721,000 after purchasing an additional 9,946 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in Universal Health Services by 255.3% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 6,345 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $1,138,000 after buying an additional 4,559 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. grew its holdings in Universal Health Services by 175.6% in the 4th quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,792 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $501,000 after acquiring an additional 1,779 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 0.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,197,537 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $274,248,000 after acquiring an additional 10,578 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 43.3% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,176 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $1,467,000 after acquiring an additional 2,472 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and set a $224.00 price target (down previously from $274.00) on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Universal Health Services from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $249.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $208.00 price target for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Universal Health Services presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $224.77.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Universal Health Services stock traded up $0.87 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $179.06. 123,830 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 744,492. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $153.99 and a 12-month high of $243.25. 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 50 day moving average of $176.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $186.95. The company has a market cap of $11.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.92, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.29.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The health services provider reported $4.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.36 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.16 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.70 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.45%. Universal Health Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 4.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Universal Health Services news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,916 shares in the company, valued at $1,418,230.56. The trade was a 11.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 16.40% of the stock is owned by 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.