Empowered Funds LLC Purchases 28,523 Shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. $UHS

Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by 63.8% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 73,230 shares of the health services provider’s stock after buying an additional 28,523 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Universal Health Services were worth $13,266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of UHS. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Universal Health Services by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,315,468 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $247,176,000 after acquiring an additional 74,128 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Universal Health Services by 9.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,241,738 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $233,311,000 after purchasing an additional 102,137 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 57.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 931,355 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $173,381,000 after purchasing an additional 340,966 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Health Services by 3.5% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 926,669 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $167,866,000 after purchasing an additional 31,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 634,592 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $119,240,000 after purchasing an additional 10,449 shares in the last quarter. 86.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UHS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on Universal Health Services from $227.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Mizuho set a $242.00 price target on Universal Health Services in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. UBS Group set a $231.00 price target on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $233.00 price objective on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Universal Health Services currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $233.87.

Universal Health Services Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:UHS opened at $228.90 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.19. Universal Health Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $152.33 and a 1 year high of $231.37. The company has a market cap of $14.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.87, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.33. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $208.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $189.59.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The health services provider reported $5.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.66 by $1.03. The company had revenue of $4.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.32 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 8.09%.Universal Health Services’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.71 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 15.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Health Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. Universal Health Services’s payout ratio is presently 3.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Warren J. Nimetz sold 3,817 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.30, for a total value of $852,336.10. Following the sale, the director owned 8,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,807.30. This trade represents a 31.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Elliot J. Md Mba Sussman sold 965 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.70, for a total transaction of $217,800.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 6,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,379,704.10. This trade represents a 13.63% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 16.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Universal Health Services Company 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.