Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.04 EPS

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) issued its earnings results on Thursday. The health services provider reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.75 by ($0.04), Briefing.com reports. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 6.22%. The company had revenue of $3.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.55 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Universal Health Services Trading Down 9.8 %

Universal Health Services stock opened at $202.75 on Friday. Universal Health Services has a one year low of $121.00 and a one year high of $243.25. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $229.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $201.02. The company has a market capitalization of $13.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.18, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.17.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on UHS. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Universal Health Services from $189.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on Universal Health Services from $256.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group upped their price target on Universal Health Services from $247.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Universal Health Services from $200.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $232.46.

Universal Health Services announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the health services provider to repurchase up to 8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Universal Health Services 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 sale, the director now owns 3,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $864,248.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Nina Chen-Langenmayr sold 850 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.11, for a total value of $180,293.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,985 shares in the company, valued at $421,038.35. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,444 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 16.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.