Westport Asset Management Inc. Takes $9.67 Million Position in Universal Health Services, Inc. $UHS

Westport Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 65,059 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $9,674,000. Universal Health Services makes up approximately 3.9% of Westport Asset Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UHS. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Universal Health Services during the 4th quarter worth $199,334,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Universal Health Services by 31.5% in the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,112,604 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $460,590,000 after buying an additional 505,575 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Universal Health Services by 100.6% in the 2nd quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 2,560 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $464,000 after buying an additional 426,211 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 59.5% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 871,377 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $189,978,000 after acquiring an additional 325,162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 12.1% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,781,262 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $318,812,000 after acquiring an additional 192,351 shares in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial lowered Universal Health Services from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on Universal Health Services from $195.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Universal Health Services from $230.00 to $197.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. UBS Group set a $290.00 price objective on Universal Health Services in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Universal Health Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Universal Health Services presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $204.93.

Universal Health Services Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE:UHS opened at $172.62 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.12. The company has a market capitalization of $10.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.05. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a one year low of $140.08 and a one year high of $246.32. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $175.08.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The health services provider reported $5.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.94 by $0.04. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 19.39% and a net margin of 8.42%.The firm had revenue of $4.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.35 earnings per share. Universal Health Services’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 23.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. Universal Health Services’s payout ratio is currently 3.26%.

About Universal Health Services

Universal Health Services, Inc (NYSE: UHS) is one of the largest diversified health care management companies in the United States, offering a broad spectrum of services through its acute care hospital and behavioral health segments. The company operates general acute care hospitals, surgical hospitals and ambulatory centers, as well as inpatient and outpatient behavioral health facilities. Its network provides emergency and specialized medicine, diagnostic imaging, laboratory services, advanced surgical care and rehabilitation, complemented by a comprehensive array of behavioral services including psychiatric treatment, addiction programs and developmental disabilities care.

In the acute care segment, UHS’s facilities deliver services ranging from emergency department treatment and intensive care to maternity care and outpatient surgery.