Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 9,377 Shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) by 2.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 465,554 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 9,377 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.63% of Healthcare Services Group worth $6,457,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Unison Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 2.1% during the first quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 34,087 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $473,000 after acquiring an additional 687 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 4.5% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 16,774 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $312,000 after purchasing an additional 725 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 20,896 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 777 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 7.7% during the first quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 10,992 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 782 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 4.1% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 19,987 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 784 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.97% of the company’s stock.

Healthcare Services Group Price Performance

Shares of HCSG stock opened at $11.55 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $856.95 million, a P/E ratio of 22.65 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $13.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $13.78. Healthcare Services Group, Inc. has a one year low of $11.48 and a one year high of $15.97.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 26th. The business services provider reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $418.93 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $418.71 million. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 8.68% and a net margin of 2.26%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.09 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Healthcare Services Group, Inc. will post 0.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on HCSG shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $16.00 target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a report on Tuesday, August 1st. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $18.00 price target on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $15.50.

About Healthcare Services Group

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.