Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $11.95, but opened at $12.44. Healthcare Services Group shares last traded at $11.36, with a volume of 143,063 shares changing hands.

The business services provider reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.04. Healthcare Services Group had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 11.44%. The business had revenue of $423.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $424.91 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.17 earnings per share. Healthcare Services Group’s revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on HCSG. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $10.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Benchmark upped their target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $14.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Healthcare Services Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HCSG. Azarias Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 248.8% during the third quarter. Azarias Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,107,788 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $11,554,000 after acquiring an additional 790,233 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 91.2% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,561,283 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $16,191,000 after buying an additional 744,527 shares during the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 336.6% in the 3rd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 843,802 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,801,000 after buying an additional 650,545 shares during the last quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 34.5% in the 3rd quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. now owns 1,597,456 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $17,591,000 after buying an additional 409,417 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invenomic Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Healthcare Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at $4,216,000. 97.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Healthcare Services Group Trading Down 2.0 %

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $12.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $10.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $810.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.30 and a beta of 0.49.

Healthcare Services Group Company Profile

Healthcare Services Group, Inc provides management, administrative, and operating services to the housekeeping, laundry, linen, facility maintenance, and dietary service departments of nursing homes, retirement complexes, rehabilitation centers, and hospitals in the United States. It operates through two segments, Housekeeping and Dietary.