Farther Finance Advisors LLC Raises Holdings in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 1,210.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,673 shares of the health services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,469 shares during the quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $612,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 0.7% during the third quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 35,135 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $8,046,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.0% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,238 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $512,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.0% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 67,351 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $15,424,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Universal Health Services during the third quarter worth about $381,000. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 61.8% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 32,429 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $7,427,000 after purchasing an additional 12,387 shares in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UHS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. KeyCorp initiated coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Universal Health Services from $200.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Universal Health Services from $247.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Universal Health Services from $255.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on Universal Health Services from $283.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Universal Health Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $231.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $217.64, for a total transaction of $749,552.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $864,248.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

Universal Health Services Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of Universal Health Services stock opened at $212.05 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $14.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.29. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $127.21 and a fifty-two week high of $243.25. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $226.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $203.06.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The health services provider reported $3.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.75 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. Universal Health Services had a net margin of 6.66% and a return on equity of 15.75%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.55 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, July 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the health services provider to purchase up to 8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.