Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado Sells 267 Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lessened its stake in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,760 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 267 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $1,033,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in Universal Health Services by 22.5% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 54,105 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $9,721,000 after purchasing an additional 9,946 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised 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 worth $1,138,000 after acquiring an additional 4,559 shares during the last quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. raised its position 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 worth $501,000 after acquiring an additional 1,779 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in 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 valued at $274,248,000 after acquiring an additional 10,578 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC increased its position in Universal Health Services by 43.3% in the fourth quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,176 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,467,000 after purchasing an additional 2,472 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Universal Health Services Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of UHS stock opened at $177.12 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $11.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $176.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $188.66. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $153.99 and a 1 year high of $243.25.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The health services provider reported $4.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.36 by $0.48. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 6.66% and a return on equity of 15.75%. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.70 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.75%.

Insider Transactions at Universal Health Services

In other news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.16, for a total value of $179,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,418,230.56. This represents a 11.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 16.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on UHS shares. Stephens raised their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $210.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Universal Health Services from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim assumed coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $208.00 price target on the stock. Baird R W cut Universal Health Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Universal Health Services from $211.00 to $201.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $224.77.

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.