1,870 Shares in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Acquired by Chesley Taft & Associates LLC

Chesley Taft & Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,870 shares of the health services provider's stock, valued at approximately $351,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,675,182 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $838,821,000 after acquiring an additional 44,099 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,713,572 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $306,776,000 after buying an additional 52,042 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Universal Health Services by 25.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,241,340 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $222,721,000 after purchasing an additional 253,385 shares during the period. 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 buying an additional 10,578 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 624,143 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $111,984,000 after buying an additional 27,903 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Universal Health Services news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,097 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.48, for a total value of $210,053.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,884 shares in the company, valued at $1,509,628.32. The trade was a 12.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 16.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens upgraded shares of Universal Health Services to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $208.00 target price on the stock. Barclays raised their price target 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, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Universal Health Services from $211.00 to $201.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. 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.com, Universal Health Services currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $224.77.

Universal Health Services Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of NYSE UHS traded down $5.06 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $172.72. The stock had a trading volume of 1,550,348 shares, compared to its average volume of 759,737. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.39. The company has a market cap of $11.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.48, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.31. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $153.99 and a fifty-two week high of $243.25. The business's 50-day moving average price is $181.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $183.57.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The health services provider reported $4.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.36 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.16 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. Universal Health Services's revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.70 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Universal Health Services's payout ratio is currently 4.49%.

About Universal Health Services

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.