First Eagle Investment Management LLC Buys 44,099 Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,675,182 shares of the health services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 44,099 shares during the period. Universal Health Services comprises approximately 1.9% of First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. First Eagle Investment Management LLC owned 0.07% of Universal Health Services worth $838,821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 22.5% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 54,105 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $9,721,000 after buying an additional 9,946 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 255.3% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 6,345 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,138,000 after buying an additional 4,559 shares in the last quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 175.6% in the fourth quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,792 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $501,000 after buying an additional 1,779 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 86.4% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 21,047 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $4,820,000 after buying an additional 9,755 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 10,578 shares in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.16, for a total transaction of $179,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,916 shares in the company, valued at $1,418,230.56. The trade was a 11.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Universal Health Services stock opened at $163.21 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.85, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.32. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $152.68 and a 1 year high of $243.25. The business has a 50-day moving average of $183.38 and a 200-day moving average of $201.91. 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 posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $4.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 EPS for the current year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on UHS. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $228.00 to $198.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Stephens raised their target price on 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. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Universal Health Services from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Universal Health Services from $275.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $226.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $230.75.

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.