Brandes Investment Partners LP Sells 1,084,471 Shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. $HCSG

Brandes Investment Partners LP reduced its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) by 63.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 614,112 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,084,471 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP owned approximately 0.85% of Healthcare Services Group worth $9,230,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HCSG. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 1.7% during the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 53,175 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $539,000 after acquiring an additional 868 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its holdings in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 6.5% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 18,721 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $281,000 after purchasing an additional 1,135 shares during the last quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey increased its position in Healthcare Services Group by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 15,925 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 1,224 shares in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 75,317 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 1,476 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Healthcare Services Group by 4.4% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 43,704 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $441,000 after buying an additional 1,824 shares in the last quarter. 97.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $20.00 price target for the company. Zacks Research downgraded Healthcare Services Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Benchmark lifted their target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $19.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Macquarie reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $19.40.

Healthcare Services Group Stock Performance

HCSG opened at $18.84 on Wednesday. Healthcare Services Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $9.13 and a 1-year high of $20.00. The company has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.89 and a beta of 0.73. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $17.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.62.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.02. Healthcare Services Group had a net margin of 2.20% and a return on equity of 12.23%. The firm had revenue of $464.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $460.36 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.19 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Healthcare Services Group, Inc. will post 0.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Healthcare Services Group Company 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.