Investors Buy Large Volume of Community Health Systems Call Options (NYSE:CYH)

Community Health Systems, Inc. (NYSE:CYH) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders bought 11,874 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 447% compared to the typical volume of 2,170 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CYH. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on Community Health Systems from $6.50 to $5.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Community Health Systems in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $3.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Community Health Systems from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Community Health Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $4.20.

Institutional Trading of Community Health Systems

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Community Health Systems by 16.4% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,239,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,095,000 after purchasing an additional 879,784 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Community Health Systems by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,583,032 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,475,000 after acquiring an additional 701,036 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Community Health Systems by 26.0% in the 3rd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 1,456,121 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,223,000 after purchasing an additional 300,115 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its position in shares of Community Health Systems by 20.5% during the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 1,715,268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,974,000 after buying an additional 292,351 shares during the period. Finally, Pathstone Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Community Health Systems during the third quarter valued at $469,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.99% of the company’s stock.

Community Health Systems Price Performance

Shares of Community Health Systems stock traded up $0.01 on Wednesday, reaching $2.97. 552,210 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,028,815. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $3.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.05. Community Health Systems has a 52 week low of $2.01 and a 52 week high of $6.53.

Community Health Systems (NYSE:CYH) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported ($0.41) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by ($0.44). Community Health Systems had a negative net margin of 1.07% and a negative return on equity of 5.51%. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Community Health Systems will post -0.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Community Health Systems Company Profile

Community Health Systems, Inc owns, leases, and operates general acute care hospitals in the United States. It offers general acute care, emergency room, general and specialty surgery, critical care, internal medicine, obstetrics, diagnostic, psychiatric, and rehabilitation services, as well as skilled nursing and home care services.