Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Stock Position Raised by Cwm LLC

CWM LLC raised its stake in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS - Free Report) by 227.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,316 shares of the health services provider's stock after buying an additional 7,858 shares during the period. CWM LLC's holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $2,126,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Universal Health Services by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,713,572 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $306,776,000 after buying an additional 52,042 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased 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 buying an additional 253,385 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Universal Health Services by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 624,143 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $111,984,000 after buying an additional 27,903 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Universal Health Services by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 596,280 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $106,985,000 after buying an additional 42,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 59.4% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on UHS shares. Robert W. Baird reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $224.00 price objective (down from $274.00) on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. 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 research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $208.00 price objective for the company. Baird R W cut shares of Universal Health Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $211.00 to $201.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $221.85.

Insider Transactions at Universal Health Services

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

Universal Health Services Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of UHS traded down $1.83 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $168.99. The company had a trading volume of 630,487 shares, compared to its average volume of 785,815. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market cap of $10.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.28. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $182.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $181.39. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $153.99 and a fifty-two week high of $243.25.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS - Get Free Report) last posted 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 business had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.16 billion. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 7.44% and a return on equity of 17.79%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.70 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.47%. Universal Health Services's payout ratio is 4.49%.

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.