Invesco Ltd. Increases Stock Holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS - Free Report) by 25.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,241,340 shares of the health services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 253,385 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned about 1.88% of Universal Health Services worth $222,721,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 73.0% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,226 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $510,000 after buying an additional 939 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in Universal Health Services by 100.6% in the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,237 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $512,000 after purchasing an additional 1,122 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 18.6% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 2,030 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $465,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.2% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 18,042 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $4,132,000 after buying an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 13.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 188,765 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $43,227,000 after buying an additional 22,369 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on UHS shares. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $271.00 to $249.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Universal Health Services in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $200.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $224.00 price objective (down from $274.00) on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Universal Health Services from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Universal Health Services presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $224.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Health Services

In other news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.16, for a total value of $179,160.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,916 shares in the company, valued at $1,418,230.56. This represents 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 available through the SEC website. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Universal Health Services stock traded up $1.45 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $175.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 206,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 745,616. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.38 billion, a PE ratio of 11.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.21. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $152.69 and a fifty-two week high of $243.25. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $179.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $191.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.39.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $4.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.71. The business had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.01 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

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

Universal Health Services Company 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.