Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research"strong sell" in a report issued Tuesday.
• Analyst views remain mixed: eight analysts rate the stock a Buy, two Hold and two Sell, giving a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a $23.36 consensus price target.
• Surgery Partners missed quarterly EPS estimates ($0.12 vs. $0.31), the stock trades near its 52-week low (~$12.65) and the board approved a $200 million share repurchase program (up to 9.7% of shares).

Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. US Capital Advisors set a $21.00 target price on shares of Surgery Partners in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Surgery Partners from $31.00 to $20.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $23.36.

Surgery Partners Price Performance

Surgery Partners stock opened at $12.65 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 1.87. Surgery Partners has a 52 week low of $11.41 and a 52 week high of $24.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.64 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.40 and a beta of 1.99. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $13.65 and a 200-day moving average of $16.49.

Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.19). Surgery Partners had a negative net margin of 2.35% and a positive return on equity of 1.28%. The business had revenue of $885.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $866.54 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.44 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Surgery Partners will post 0.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Surgery Partners announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 9.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Surgery Partners news, CEO Jason Eric Evans sold 20,400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.47, for a total value of $254,388.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 920,386 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,477,213.42. This represents a 2.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Danielle Burkhalter sold 3,469 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.83, for a total transaction of $44,507.27. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 76,864 shares of the company's stock, valued at $986,165.12. The trade was a 4.32% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 96,896 shares of company stock worth $1,284,058. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SGRY. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of Surgery Partners by 104.2% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,931,577 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,151,000 after buying an additional 985,748 shares during the last quarter. Alpine Global Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Surgery Partners during the fourth quarter worth about $175,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Surgery Partners by 1,340.9% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 161,419 shares of the company's stock worth $2,494,000 after acquiring an additional 150,216 shares during the period. One68 Global Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Surgery Partners in the fourth quarter worth approximately $371,000. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new stake in Surgery Partners in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,080,000.

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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