Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) was the recipient of a significant 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 currently 6.3 days. Currently, 3.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Healthcare Services Group Trading Down 1.8 %

Healthcare Services Group stock traded down $0.19 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $10.55. 50,811 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 504,727. Healthcare Services Group has a fifty-two week low of $8.75 and a fifty-two week high of $13.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $776.97 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.61 and a beta of 0.52. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.95.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Healthcare Services Group

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 44.4% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 3,107 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 955 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 7.4% in the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 14,994 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $187,000 after purchasing an additional 1,030 shares in the last quarter. Bridge City Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 0.8% in the first quarter. Bridge City Capital LLC now owns 145,986 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,822,000 after purchasing an additional 1,104 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 4.8% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 28,368 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $300,000 after purchasing an additional 1,311 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 12.9% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 12,357 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $154,000 after purchasing an additional 1,411 shares in the last quarter. 97.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on HCSG. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target 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. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $17.00 price target on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $14.50.

Healthcare Services Group Company Profile

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.