Royal Bank of Canada Increases Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Price Target to $189.00

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) had its target price hoisted by Royal Bank of Canada from $183.00 to $189.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “sector perform” rating on the health services provider’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 11.52% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Universal Health Services from $144.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $152.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com raised shares of Universal Health Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Barclays boosted their price target on Universal Health Services from $181.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Universal Health Services from $170.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Universal Health Services has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $183.20.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

NYSE:UHS opened at $169.47 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. Universal Health Services has a 12 month low of $119.90 and a 12 month high of $183.61. The business’s 50-day moving average is $171.56 and its 200 day moving average is $155.92. The company has a market capitalization of $11.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.26.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The health services provider reported $3.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.14 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 5.57% and a return on equity of 13.34%. The business’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.34 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Universal Health Services will post 13.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Universal Health Services news, CFO Steve Filton sold 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.82, for a total transaction of $6,188,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 68,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,162,563.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Health Services

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Todd Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 159,605 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $24,330,000 after purchasing an additional 24,279 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in Universal Health Services by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 74,240 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $11,317,000 after acquiring an additional 9,221 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Universal Health Services by 3.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,090,010 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $137,047,000 after acquiring an additional 37,243 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its position in Universal Health Services by 51.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 62,949 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $7,915,000 after purchasing an additional 21,325 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Universal Health Services by 4,622.3% in the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 16,906 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $2,125,000 after purchasing an additional 16,548 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

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.