Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $26.20.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HCSG. Benchmark upped 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 report on Thursday, April 23rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Healthcare Services Group from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Healthcare Services Group from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Healthcare Services Group from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Healthcare Services Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Healthcare Services Group by 4.3% during the fourth 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 during the period. 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 acquiring an additional 738 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Healthcare Services Group by 32.0% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,619 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 877 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC raised its position in Healthcare Services Group by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 11,802 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $226,000 after acquiring an additional 895 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Healthcare Services Group by 0.5% in 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 acquiring an additional 970 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.97% of the company’s stock.

Healthcare Services Group Price Performance

HCSG opened at $23.08 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.42 and a beta of 0.78. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $22.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.07. Healthcare Services Group has a 1 year low of $12.84 and a 1 year high of $25.75.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.10. Healthcare Services Group had a net margin of 6.59% and a return on equity of 18.97%. The company had revenue of $470.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $471.22 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.44) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Healthcare Services Group will post 1.01 EPS for the current 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.