Northern Trust Corp Acquires 59,829 Shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG)

Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 771,772 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 59,829 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.05% of Healthcare Services Group worth $8,964,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in HCSG. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new position in Healthcare Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at $166,278,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,909,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,031,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 41.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 794,613 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $9,229,000 after acquiring an additional 234,025 shares during the period. Finally, Dean Investment Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,607,000. Institutional investors own 97.97% of the company’s stock.

Healthcare Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of HCSG stock opened at $14.80 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.41 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.52. Healthcare Services Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $9.13 and a 52 week high of $14.90.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $447.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $443.82 million. Healthcare Services Group had a net margin of 2.30% and a return on equity of 11.76%. Healthcare Services Group’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.22 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Healthcare Services Group, Inc. will post 0.74 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on HCSG shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird lifted 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 lifted their price objective on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $12.00 to $15.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.80.

Healthcare Services Group Profile

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.