Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Buys 7,230 Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. $UHS

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board raised its stake in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 36.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,938 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,230 shares during the quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $4,880,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in Universal Health Services by 7.7% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 15,481 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $2,804,000 after buying an additional 1,112 shares in the last quarter. WealthTrust Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. WealthTrust Asset Management LLC now owns 2,810 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $509,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 23.0% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 10,319 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,869,000 after acquiring an additional 1,929 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 14,026 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $2,541,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.5% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 926,669 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $167,866,000 after purchasing an additional 31,201 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Universal Health Services stock opened at $224.97 on Friday. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $152.33 and a 12 month high of $231.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $206.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $188.79. The company has a market cap of $14.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.69, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.33.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The health services provider reported $5.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.66 by $1.03. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 8.09%.The business had revenue of $4.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.32 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.71 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Elliot J. Md Mba Sussman sold 965 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.70, for a total value of $217,800.50. Following the sale, the director owned 6,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,379,704.10. The trade was a 13.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,817 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.30, for a total transaction of $852,336.10. Following the sale, the director owned 8,481 shares in the company, valued at $1,893,807.30. The trade was a 31.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 16.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UHS has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group set a $231.00 price target on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Thursday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $219.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Universal Health Services in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Universal Health Services from $249.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $233.87.

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.