Leuthold Group LLC Purchases Shares of 21,253 Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Leuthold Group LLC purchased a new stake in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 21,253 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,878,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 27.9% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 65,643 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $11,998,000 after acquiring an additional 14,326 shares during the period. Todd Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 17.9% in the 4th quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 159,605 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $24,330,000 after acquiring an additional 24,279 shares during the period. 8 Knots Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Universal Health Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,010,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 14.2% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 74,240 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $11,317,000 after buying an additional 9,221 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 12,924.9% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 503,935 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $76,820,000 after buying an additional 500,066 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Universal Health Services Stock Performance

NYSE:UHS traded up $0.85 on Friday, reaching $184.80. 179,553 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 611,065. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market cap of $12.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.28. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $119.90 and a 52 week high of $194.02. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $182.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $171.22.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The health services provider reported $3.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.14 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 5.57% and a return on equity of 13.34%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.34 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 13.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.43%. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on UHS shares. UBS Group raised shares of Universal Health Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $189.00 to $226.00 in a report on Monday, May 20th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Universal Health Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $182.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $194.21.

Universal Health Services 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.