The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 2,881 Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its position in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 5.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 49,592 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 2,881 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.07% of Universal Health Services worth $11,357,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in Universal Health Services by 134.2% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,744 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,595,000 after acquiring an additional 5,010 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Universal Health Services during the 1st quarter worth $642,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its position in Universal Health Services by 33.6% during the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 4,521 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $820,000 after buying an additional 1,138 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Universal Health Services by 84.7% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 665 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $123,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DNB Asset Management AS boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 27.3% in the second quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 10,762 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,990,000 after acquiring an additional 2,310 shares in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UHS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $285.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $222.00 to $211.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They issued a “sector weight” rating for the company. Barclays boosted their price target on Universal Health Services from $256.00 to $271.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $223.00 price objective for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $225.50.

Universal Health Services Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE UHS opened at $200.95 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $13.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.29. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $214.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $207.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $133.70 and a 52-week high of $243.25.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The health services provider reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.75 by ($0.04). Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 15.75% and a net margin of 6.66%. The firm had revenue of $3.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.55 earnings per share. Universal Health Services’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.40%. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.32%.

Universal Health Services Profile

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.