Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 255,659 Shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lessened its stake in Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG - Free Report) by 28.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 641,927 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 255,659 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.87% of Healthcare Services Group worth $6,471,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HCSG. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 41,880 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $486,000 after buying an additional 1,461 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in Healthcare Services Group by 803.4% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,358 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 2,097 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Bridge City Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Bridge City Capital LLC now owns 171,424 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,728,000 after purchasing an additional 2,419 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 46,091 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $535,000 after acquiring an additional 2,465 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.97% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Healthcare Services Group from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group raised Healthcare Services Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $12.00 to $15.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Macquarie boosted their target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Healthcare Services Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $14.80.

Healthcare Services Group Price Performance

HCSG stock traded down $0.02 on Wednesday, reaching $14.49. 273,889 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 510,931. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $13.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 25.86 and a beta of 0.55. Healthcare Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $9.13 and a 12 month high of $15.34.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.05. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 11.68% and a net margin of 2.38%. The business had revenue of $447.66 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $443.82 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.22 earnings per share. Healthcare Services Group's revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Healthcare Services Group, Inc. will post 0.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Healthcare Services Group Profile

Healthcare Services Group, Inc provides management, administrative, and operating services to the housekeeping, laundry, linen, facility maintenance, and dietary service departments of nursing homes, retirement complexes, rehabilitation centers, and hospitals in the United States. It operates through two segments, Housekeeping and Dietary.