Short Interest in Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) Increases By 14.5%

Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,760,000 shares, a growth of 14.5% from the November 30th total of 2,410,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 405,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.8 days. Approximately 3.8% of the company's stock are sold short.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in HCSG. Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 4,449,496 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $49,701,000 after buying an additional 290,621 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 8.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,964,325 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,112,000 after acquiring an additional 226,818 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 9.7% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,057,202 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $21,766,000 after acquiring an additional 181,231 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 2.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,760,971 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $19,674,000 after acquiring an additional 50,375 shares during the period. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP boosted its position in Healthcare Services Group by 12.2% in the second quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 1,318,045 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $13,983,000 after purchasing an additional 142,997 shares during the last quarter. 97.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Healthcare Services Group Price Performance

Shares of Healthcare Services Group stock remained flat at $11.52 on Monday. The stock had a trading volume of 231,744 shares, compared to its average volume of 487,427. Healthcare Services Group has a 12-month low of $8.98 and a 12-month high of $13.00. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $11.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $844.31 million, a PE ratio of 16.70 and a beta of 0.55.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $428.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $429.95 million. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 12.59% and a net margin of 2.95%. Healthcare Services Group's quarterly revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.17 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Healthcare Services Group will post 0.81 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on HCSG shares. Macquarie began coverage on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $13.00 price objective on the stock. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $17.00 price target on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Healthcare Services Group from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Healthcare Services Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, December 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $13.80.

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.

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