First Eagle Investment Management LLC Sells 307,588 Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. $UHS

Key Points

• First Eagle Investment Management cut its Universal Health Services stake by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 307,588 shares and leaving it with 4,313,583 shares valued at about $940.4 million.
• Several analysts turned more cautious on UHS, with recent downgrades and target-price cuts leading to an overall “Hold” consensus and an average price target of $220.94.
• Universal Health Services reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $5.62 on revenue of $4.50 billion, and also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share.

First Eagle Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS - Free Report) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,313,583 shares of the health services provider's stock after selling 307,588 shares during the period. Universal Health Services comprises approximately 1.7% of First Eagle Investment Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. First Eagle Investment Management LLC owned about 6.90% of Universal Health Services worth $940,447,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Stephens Inc. AR grew its position in Universal Health Services by 4.2% during the third quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 1,250 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $256,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Universal Health Services by 3.3% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,794 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $367,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 1,027 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,859 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $841,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.1% in the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,217 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $453,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UHS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Universal Health Services from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Zacks Research cut shares of Universal Health Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $233.00 to $212.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Guggenheim cut their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $238.00 to $211.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $320.00 to $310.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Universal Health Services has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $220.94.

Universal Health Services Stock Performance

NYSE:UHS opened at $168.23 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $10.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.13. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $183.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $207.74. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $152.33 and a twelve month high of $246.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The health services provider reported $5.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.41 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $4.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.39 billion. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 8.56% and a return on equity of 19.57%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.84 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 23.34 EPS for the current year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Universal Health Services's payout ratio is 3.33%.

Universal Health Services Company Profile

Universal Health Services, Inc NYSE: UHS is one of the largest diversified health care management companies in the United States, offering a broad spectrum of services through its acute care hospital and behavioral health segments. The company operates general acute care hospitals, surgical hospitals and ambulatory centers, as well as inpatient and outpatient behavioral health facilities. Its network provides emergency and specialized medicine, diagnostic imaging, laboratory services, advanced surgical care and rehabilitation, complemented by a comprehensive array of behavioral services including psychiatric treatment, addiction programs and developmental disabilities care.

In the acute care segment, UHS's facilities deliver services ranging from emergency department treatment and intensive care to maternity care and outpatient surgery.

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