Distillate Capital Partners LLC Buys New Shares in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Distillate Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 88,555 shares of the health services provider's stock, valued at approximately $15,889,000. Distillate Capital Partners LLC owned 0.13% of Universal Health Services as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 22.5% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 54,105 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $9,721,000 after acquiring an additional 9,946 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 255.3% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 6,345 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $1,138,000 after buying an additional 4,559 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 175.6% during the fourth quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,792 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $501,000 after buying an additional 1,779 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 0.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,197,537 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $274,248,000 after buying an additional 10,578 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC lifted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 43.3% during the 4th quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,176 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $1,467,000 after acquiring an additional 2,472 shares during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on UHS. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Universal Health Services from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $224.00 target price (down from $274.00) on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Tuesday. Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $208.00 price target for the company. 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. Finally, Baird R W cut Universal Health Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $224.92.

Universal Health Services Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of UHS stock traded up $0.91 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $174.57. 585,657 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 747,016. The stock's fifty day moving average is $179.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $191.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.28. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $152.69 and a 52-week high of $243.25. The stock has a market cap of $11.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.21.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 net margin of 6.66% and a return on equity of 15.75%. The company had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.01 billion. Equities analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 EPS for the current year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. Universal Health Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.75%.

Insider Activity at Universal Health Services

In other news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was 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. The trade was a 11.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.