Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Universal Health Services, Inc. has received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from fourteen analysts, with one sell rating, eight hold ratings, and five buy ratings assigned.
• The company reported earnings of $5.35 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $4.85, and has set its FY 2025 guidance at 20.000-21.000 EPS.
• Universal Health Services will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.20 to stockholders on September 16, representing an annualized dividend yield of 0.4%.

Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the fourteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $214.1538.

Several analysts recently issued reports on UHS shares. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $201.00 to $206.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $243.00 to $203.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Bank of America lowered Universal Health Services from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $215.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Stephens raised Universal Health Services to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price 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.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Health Services

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UHS. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 22.9% in the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 354 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 49.3% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 203 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Choreo LLC increased its stake in Universal Health Services by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 1,838 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $333,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Universal Health Services by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,665 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $501,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Universal Health Services by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,266 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $227,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company's stock.

Universal Health Services Stock Performance

Universal Health Services stock traded up $1.4880 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $185.4380. 627,249 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 961,902. Universal Health Services has a 12-month low of $152.33 and a 12-month high of $243.25. The business's 50-day moving average is $174.37 and its 200-day moving average is $178.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.80 billion, a PE ratio of 9.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.85 by $0.50. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 7.66%.The business had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.31 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Universal Health Services has set its FY 2025 guidance at 20.000-21.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Universal Health Services will post 15.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Universal Health Services's payout ratio is 4.21%.

About Universal Health Services

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.