Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $23.00 price objective on Healthcare Services Group in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Thursday. Macquarie Infrastructure reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a research note on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Healthcare Services Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.00.

Healthcare Services Group Price Performance

NASDAQ HCSG opened at $21.59 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.52 billion, a PE ratio of 26.33 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a fifty day moving average of $19.26 and a 200 day moving average of $17.43. Healthcare Services Group has a 1 year low of $9.13 and a 1 year high of $22.98.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $466.68 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $467.24 million. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 16.04% and a net margin of 3.21%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.16 EPS. Research analysts expect that Healthcare Services Group will post 0.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Healthcare Services Group

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. 8 Knots Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $56,527,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in Healthcare Services Group by 240.1% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,496,835 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $22,497,000 after buying an additional 1,056,705 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Healthcare Services Group by 80.2% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,981,840 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,354,000 after buying an additional 882,213 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 183.0% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,278,993 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,223,000 after buying an additional 827,057 shares during the period. Finally, CSM Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,864,000. 97.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.