Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) Raised to “Strong-Buy” at Zacks Research

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on HCSG. Weiss Ratings raised Healthcare Services Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Healthcare Services Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Healthcare Services Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $26.20.

Healthcare Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HCSG opened at $23.15 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $1.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.46 and a beta of 0.81. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $22.99 and its 200-day moving average is $21.16. Healthcare Services Group has a 52-week low of $13.65 and a 52-week high of $25.75.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.10. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 18.97% and a net margin of 6.59%.The business had revenue of $470.81 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $471.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.44) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Healthcare Services Group will post 1.1 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Healthcare Services Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,052 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $269,000 after buying an additional 581 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its position in Healthcare Services Group by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 20,151 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $385,000 after purchasing an additional 738 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 32.0% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,619 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 11,802 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 895 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in Healthcare Services Group by 0.5% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 200,393 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,373,000 after purchasing an additional 970 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.97% of the company’s stock.

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.