Ameriprise Financial Inc. Purchases 53,628 Shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) by 5.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 959,293 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 53,628 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned approximately 1.31% of Healthcare Services Group worth $11,142,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HCSG. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Healthcare Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at $166,278,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Healthcare Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at $5,909,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the fourth quarter worth about $3,031,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 41.7% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 794,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,229,000 after purchasing an additional 234,025 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dean Investment Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the fourth quarter worth about $2,607,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.97% of the company’s stock.

Healthcare Services Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:HCSG opened at $14.80 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $11.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $11.52. Healthcare Services Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $9.13 and a 1-year high of $14.90. The firm has a market cap of $1.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.41 and a beta of 0.55.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.05. Healthcare Services Group had a net margin of 2.30% and a return on equity of 11.76%. The firm had revenue of $447.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $443.82 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.22 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Healthcare Services Group, Inc. will post 0.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on HCSG. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Macquarie increased their price target on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $12.00 to $15.00 in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $14.80.

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.