JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Position in Healthcare Services Group, Inc. $HCSG

JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) by 46.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 553,663 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 175,880 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.79% of Healthcare Services Group worth $9,318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HCSG. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 3.7% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 139,126 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 4,917 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake 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 worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 1,824 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in Healthcare Services Group in the first quarter worth $242,000. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 962.0% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 200,082 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,017,000 after purchasing an additional 181,242 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Healthcare Services Group by 2.7% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 199,423 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,997,000 after buying an additional 5,199 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on HCSG shares. William Blair raised shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $22.00 price target on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Healthcare Services Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Healthcare Services Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Healthcare Services Group

In other Healthcare Services Group news, EVP Patrick J. Orr sold 44,615 shares of Healthcare Services Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.53, for a total value of $915,945.95. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Andrew M. Brophy sold 2,490 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.75, for a total transaction of $54,157.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 15,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $342,236.25. This represents a 13.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 146,962 shares of company stock worth $3,014,100. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Healthcare Services Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ HCSG opened at $18.49 on Monday. Healthcare Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $9.13 and a 12 month high of $22.98. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $19.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.61. The stock has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.55 and a beta of 0.73.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $466.68 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $467.24 million. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 16.04% and a net margin of 3.21%.Healthcare Services Group’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.16 EPS. As a group, 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 (NASDAQ: HCSG) is a leading provider of support services to healthcare facilities across the United States. The company specializes in environmental services, including housekeeping and sanitation, as well as linen and laundry management. In addition, Healthcare Services Group offers dietary and nutrition services, catering to hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, assisted living communities and other long-term care providers.

Founded as a family-owned business in the late 1970s, the company completed its initial public offering in 1997.