Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 410 Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 7,750 shares of the health services provider’s stock after buying an additional 410 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $1,391,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Universal Health Services by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,724,075 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $623,840,000 after acquiring an additional 17,527 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Universal Health Services by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,661,530 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $379,403,000 after acquiring an additional 63,754 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,197,537 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $274,248,000 after purchasing an additional 10,578 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 603,705 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $138,254,000 after purchasing an additional 11,353 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 487,904 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $87,540,000 after purchasing an additional 10,250 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on UHS. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Universal Health Services from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Universal Health Services from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $226.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Universal Health Services from $275.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Universal Health Services from $271.00 to $249.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $230.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.16, for a total transaction of $179,160.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,418,230.56. This trade represents a 11.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 16.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Universal Health Services Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE UHS opened at $167.83 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.28. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $182.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $200.95. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a one year low of $152.68 and a one year high of $243.25. The firm has a market cap of $10.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.32.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $4.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.71. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. The firm had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 EPS for the current year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.75%.

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.