Qsemble Capital Management LP Makes New $642,000 Investment in Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)

Qsemble Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,473 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $642,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Universal Health Services by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,160 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $215,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 19.5% during the second quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 386 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 11.4% in the first quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 624 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in Universal Health Services by 3.1% in the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 2,455 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $448,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in Universal Health Services by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 5,498 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,017,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Universal Health Services from $182.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Universal Health Services from $189.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of 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 increased their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $247.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Universal Health Services currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.92.

Universal Health Services Stock Performance

Shares of UHS opened at $232.56 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $213.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $189.88. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $119.90 and a 12 month high of $241.95. The firm has a market cap of $15.57 billion, a PE ratio of 19.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The health services provider reported $4.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.37 by $0.94. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 6.22%. The business had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.53 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.34%. Universal Health Services’s payout ratio is 6.78%.

Universal Health Services announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the health services provider to repurchase up to 8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.64, for a total transaction of $749,552.16. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $864,248.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Universal Health Services news, Director Nina Chen-Langenmayr sold 850 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.11, for a total transaction of $180,293.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $421,038.35. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,444 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.64, for a total transaction of $749,552.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,971 shares in the company, valued at $864,248.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,970 shares of company stock valued at $4,653,535. Insiders own 16.10% of the company’s stock.

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.