Surgery Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGRY) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Surgery Partners has an average analyst rating of “Moderate Buy”, with 8 buy ratings, 3 hold ratings, and 1 sell rating across 12 firms. The average 12-month price target is about $22.18.
• The company recently reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting a smaller loss per share than analysts expected and revenue above estimates. Revenue rose 4.5% year over year to $810.9 million.
• Management also authorized a $200 million share buyback, while insiders have sold shares and several institutional investors increased their stakes in the stock. The shares were trading around $13.40, well below the average analyst target.

Surgery Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:SGRY - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $22.1818.

A number of analysts recently commented on SGRY shares. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $17.00 price target on shares of Surgery Partners in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. US Capital Advisors set a $21.00 price target on Surgery Partners in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Surgery Partners from $31.00 to $20.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Surgery Partners news, insider Marissa Brittenham sold 3,657 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.54, for a total value of $45,858.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 94,196 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,181,217.84. This trade represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO David T. Doherty sold 8,867 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.50, for a total value of $110,837.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 221,679 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,770,987.50. This represents a 3.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 96,896 shares of company stock valued at $1,284,058. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Surgery Partners

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Surgery Partners by 97.9% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,239,982 shares of the company's stock worth $14,781,000 after buying an additional 613,505 shares during the last quarter. Irenic Capital Management LP increased its position in Surgery Partners by 740.2% in the first quarter. Irenic Capital Management LP now owns 711,000 shares of the company's stock worth $8,475,000 after buying an additional 626,380 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in Surgery Partners by 38.5% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 113,671 shares of the company's stock worth $1,355,000 after buying an additional 31,599 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in Surgery Partners by 435.0% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 82,520 shares of the company's stock worth $984,000 after buying an additional 67,095 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Surgery Partners in the first quarter worth $235,000.

Surgery Partners Stock Performance

Shares of Surgery Partners stock opened at $13.40 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.75 billion, a PE ratio of -22.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.42 and a beta of 1.99. Surgery Partners has a 52 week low of $11.41 and a 52 week high of $24.10. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $13.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.15) by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $810.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $797.69 million. Surgery Partners had a positive return on equity of 1.04% and a negative net margin of 2.28%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.04 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Surgery Partners will post 0.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Surgery Partners announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, February 26th that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 9.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Surgery Partners Company Profile

Surgery Partners, Inc operates as a healthcare services provider specializing in the management and ownership of ambulatory surgery centers, surgical hospitals and multispecialty rehabilitation hospitals across the United States. Through its network of facilities, the company coordinates and delivers a broad range of outpatient surgical procedures in specialties such as orthopedics, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, gastroenterology, pain management and general surgery. Its integrated platform offers ancillary services including on-site imaging, laboratory testing, infusion therapy and physical, occupational and speech rehabilitation.

Since its establishment in 2010 and subsequent public listing in 2015, Surgery Partners has focused on strategic partnerships with physicians and health systems to expand access to cost-effective outpatient care.

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