Universal Health Services, Inc. (UHS) To Go Ex-Dividend on March 3rd

Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 12th,RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of 0.20 per share by the health services provider on Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd.

Universal Health Services has a dividend payout ratio of 4.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Universal Health Services to earn $17.69 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 4.5%.

Universal Health Services Price Performance

Universal Health Services stock opened at $182.52 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.39. Universal Health Services has a 52 week low of $152.68 and a 52 week high of $243.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $185.27 and a 200-day moving average of $207.51.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Universal Health Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $256.00 to $271.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $226.00 target price on shares of Universal Health Services in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Universal Health Services from $275.00 to $251.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Universal Health Services from $285.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Universal Health Services currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $226.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Maria Ruderman Singer sold 1,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.15, for a total transaction of $308,516.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,879 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,123,770.85. This trade represents a 21.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 16.10% of the stock is owned by 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.