Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Shares Sold by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS - Free Report) by 96.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,333 shares of the health services provider's stock after selling 57,284 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans' holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $534,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 4.2% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,160 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $215,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC lifted its position in Universal Health Services by 19.5% during the 2nd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 386 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its position in Universal Health Services by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 5,704 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $1,306,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,238 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $512,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. lifted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 31.6% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 283 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on UHS. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $223.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on Universal Health Services from $247.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $222.00 to $211.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $236.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Universal Health Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, November 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $225.50.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

UHS traded down $3.07 on Thursday, reaching $196.05. The company had a trading volume of 429,371 shares, compared to its average volume of 683,932. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $133.70 and a 52-week high of $243.25. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $212.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $207.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.39. The company has a market cap of $12.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.28.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The health services provider reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.75 by ($0.04). Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. The company had revenue of $3.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.55 earnings per share. Universal Health Services's revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.88 EPS for the current year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. Universal Health Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 5.32%.

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.