Northern Trust Corp Cuts Holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. $UHS

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp owns a $107.53 million stake in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS), despite lowering its position by 4% in the first quarter.
• Universal Health Services reported $5.35 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations of $4.85, with a revenue of $4.28 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, representing an annualized yield of 0.4% and a payout ratio of 4.21%.

Northern Trust Corp lowered its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS - Free Report) by 4.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 572,265 shares of the health services provider's stock after selling 24,015 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 0.88% of Universal Health Services worth $107,529,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 6.0% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,315,468 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $247,176,000 after purchasing an additional 74,128 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 9.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,241,738 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $233,311,000 after purchasing an additional 102,137 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.7% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 634,592 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $119,240,000 after purchasing an additional 10,449 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 59.4% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 590,389 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $105,928,000 after purchasing an additional 219,942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.5% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 504,804 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $94,853,000 after purchasing an additional 16,900 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Universal Health Services from $225.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Stephens raised Universal Health Services to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Barclays increased their price target on Universal Health Services from $257.00 to $259.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Bank of America downgraded Universal Health Services from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $215.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Universal Health Services from $243.00 to $203.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Universal Health Services currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $214.77.

Universal Health Services Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE UHS traded down $2.42 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $181.47. The company had a trading volume of 977,840 shares, compared to its average volume of 899,659. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a one year low of $152.33 and a one year high of $243.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $174.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $178.42. The stock has a market cap of $11.55 billion, a PE ratio of 9.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.24.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The health services provider reported $5.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.85 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.24 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 7.66%.Universal Health Services's quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.31 EPS. Universal Health Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 20.000-21.000 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. Universal Health Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.21%.

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.