Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) Position Reduced by M&T Bank Corp

M&T Bank Corp decreased its position in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 5.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,700 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 170 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $484,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Universal Health Services by 0.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,724,075 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $623,840,000 after purchasing an additional 17,527 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Universal Health Services by 4.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,661,530 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $379,403,000 after purchasing an additional 63,754 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Universal Health Services by 0.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,197,537 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $274,248,000 after purchasing an additional 10,578 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Universal Health Services by 1.9% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 603,705 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $138,254,000 after purchasing an additional 11,353 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Universal Health Services by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 487,904 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $87,540,000 after buying an additional 10,250 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Universal Health Services Trading Down 2.0 %

NYSE UHS opened at $163.21 on Friday. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $152.68 and a twelve month high of $243.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $10.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.85, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $183.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $201.91.

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

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 is Monday, March 3rd. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 4.75%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.16, for a total transaction of $179,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UHS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Universal Health Services from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $226.00 price target on shares of Universal Health Services in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $210.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.