Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) Stock Position Raised by National Bank of Canada FI

National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) by 13.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,900 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,386 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Healthcare Services Group were worth $291,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 803.4% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,358 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 2,097 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 161.4% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 8,097 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can acquired a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the fourth quarter worth about $118,000. PharVision Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $147,000. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Healthcare Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $158,000. 97.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Healthcare Services Group Stock Down 0.5%

Healthcare Services Group stock opened at $15.02 on Friday. Healthcare Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $9.13 and a 12 month high of $15.73. The stock has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 107.29 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $12.61.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by $0.01. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 11.74% and a net margin of 0.61%. The firm had revenue of $458.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $450.78 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.20 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Healthcare Services Group, Inc. will post 0.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on HCSG. UBS Group raised shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $12.00 to $15.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Zacks Research upgraded Healthcare Services Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Benchmark upped their price target on Healthcare Services Group from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Healthcare Services Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Healthcare Services Group from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Healthcare Services Group currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $16.25.

Insider Activity at Healthcare Services Group

In related news, EVP John Christopher Shea sold 21,368 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.25, for a total value of $283,126.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 32,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $436,932. This represents a 39.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Healthcare Services Group Profile

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.