King of Prussia, Pennsylvania-based Universal Health Services, Inc. (UHS) is a healthcare management company that owns and operates acute care hospitals, and outpatient and behavioral health care facilities. Valued at a market cap of $10.9 billion, the company is expected to announce its fiscal Q1 earnings for 2026 in the near future.
Before this event, analysts expect this healthcare company to report a profit of $5.36 per share, up 10.7% from $4.84 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company has topped Wall Street’s bottom-line estimates in three of the last four quarters, while missing on another occasion. Its earnings of $5.88 per share in the previous quarter fell short of the forecasted figure by a slight margin.
For the current fiscal year, ending in December, analysts expect UHS to report a profit of $23.43 per share, up 7.8% from $21.74 per share in fiscal 2025. Furthermore, its EPS is expected to grow 8.9% year-over-year to $25.52 in fiscal 2027.
Shares of UHS have declined 7.1% over the past 52 weeks, considerably underperforming both the S&P 500 Index's ($SPX) 16.7% return and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF’s (XLV) 2% uptick over the same time period.
Shares of UHS plunged 11.4% on Feb. 26, after its mixed Q4 earnings release on Feb. 25. The company posted revenue of $4.5 billion, which topped analyst estimates by a slight margin. However, its adjusted earnings of $5.88 per share missed consensus expectations of $5.92, which might have made investors jittery. Despite the earnings miss, UHS offered an encouraging outlook for 2026, projecting both revenue and earnings per share above Wall Street expectations.
Wall Street analysts are moderately optimistic about UHS’ stock, with a "Moderate Buy" rating overall. Among 19 analysts covering the stock, seven recommend "Strong Buy," one advises a "Moderate Buy,” 10 suggest "Hold," and one indicates a "Moderate Sell” rating. The mean price target for UHS is $251.06, indicating a 42.2% potential upside from the current levels.
On the date of publication, Neharika Jain did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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