E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Increases Stake in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 114.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,887 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,007 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $339,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake 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 period. Savant Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 255.3% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 6,345 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,138,000 after buying an additional 4,559 shares during the last quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 175.6% in the 4th quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,792 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $501,000 after buying an additional 1,779 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 86.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 21,047 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $4,820,000 after buying an additional 9,755 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,197,537 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $274,248,000 after buying an additional 10,578 shares during the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Health Services

In other Universal Health Services news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,614 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.15, for a total transaction of $308,516.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,123,770.85. The trade was a 21.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 16.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Universal Health Services Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:UHS opened at $172.04 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $183.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $203.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.44, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.32. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $152.68 and a 12-month high of $243.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $4.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.71. The business had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Universal Health Services’s payout ratio is 4.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on UHS shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Universal Health Services from $285.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $228.00 to $198.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Universal Health Services from $275.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Universal Health Services from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Universal Health Services from $271.00 to $249.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Universal Health Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $231.17.

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.