Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) Short Interest Update

Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) was the target of a large increase in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,640,000 shares, an increase of 9.5% from the September 15th total of 2,410,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 420,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.3 days. Approximately 3.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Healthcare Services Group Price Performance

HCSG remained flat at $10.74 during trading on Wednesday. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 278,790 shares, compared to its average volume of 506,997. The company has a market capitalization of $790.96 million, a PE ratio of 18.91 and a beta of 0.52. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $10.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $10.95. Healthcare Services Group has a 52-week low of $8.75 and a 52-week high of $13.00.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 1.82%. The business had revenue of $426.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $424.94 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Healthcare Services Group will post 0.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on HCSG shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Healthcare Services Group from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $17.00 target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $14.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Healthcare Services Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of HCSG. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Healthcare Services Group by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,629,517 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $89,488,000 after buying an additional 167,779 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 38.3% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 6,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 1,714 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Healthcare Services Group in the first quarter worth about $2,259,000. CWM LLC increased its position in Healthcare Services Group by 12.9% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 12,357 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $154,000 after purchasing an additional 1,411 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Healthcare Services Group during the 1st quarter worth about $344,000. 97.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Healthcare Services Group

Healthcare Services Group, Inc provides management, administrative, and operating services to the housekeeping, laundry, linen, facility maintenance, and dietary service departments of nursing homes, retirement complexes, rehabilitation centers, and hospitals in the United States. It operates through two segments, Housekeeping and Dietary.