Legato Capital Management LLC Purchases 45,133 Shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. $HCSG

Legato Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) by 45.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 144,950 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 45,133 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.21% of Healthcare Services Group worth $2,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Trail Ridge Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Trail Ridge Investment Advisors LLC now owns 24,309 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $409,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 3.4% in the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 21,563 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 719 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its position in Healthcare Services Group by 6.5% during the second quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 18,721 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $281,000 after buying an additional 1,135 shares during the period. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey increased its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 8.3% during the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 15,925 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $239,000 after buying an additional 1,224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 163.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 1,356 shares during the last quarter. 97.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on HCSG. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, February 22nd. Robert W. Baird set a $23.00 price target on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, William Blair raised shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP John Christopher Shea sold 54,357 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.41, for a total transaction of $1,109,426.37. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 29,292 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $597,849.72. This trade represents a 64.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Andrew M. Brophy sold 2,490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.75, for a total value of $54,157.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 15,735 shares in the company, valued at $342,236.25. The trade was a 13.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 146,962 shares of company stock valued at $3,014,100 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Healthcare Services Group Stock Up 2.1%

HCSG stock opened at $22.22 on Tuesday. Healthcare Services Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $9.13 and a 52 week high of $22.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.10 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.04.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.21. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 16.04% and a net margin of 3.21%.The business had revenue of $466.68 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $467.24 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.16 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Healthcare Services Group, Inc. will post 0.74 EPS for the current year.

Healthcare Services Group Profile

Healthcare Services Group, Inc (NASDAQ: HCSG) is a leading provider of support services to healthcare facilities across the United States. The company specializes in environmental services, including housekeeping and sanitation, as well as linen and laundry management. In addition, Healthcare Services Group offers dietary and nutrition services, catering to hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, assisted living communities and other long-term care providers.

Founded as a family-owned business in the late 1970s, the company completed its initial public offering in 1997.