Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) Downgraded to “Strong Sell” Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Surgery Partners from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Surgery Partners from $31.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Surgery Partners from $28.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Surgery Partners in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.36.

Surgery Partners Stock Performance

SGRY opened at $12.65 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a PE ratio of -20.40 and a beta of 1.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $13.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.49. Surgery Partners has a fifty-two week low of $11.41 and a fifty-two week high of $24.18.

Surgery Partners (NASDAQ:SGRY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 2nd. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $885.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $866.54 million. Surgery Partners had a positive return on equity of 1.28% and a negative net margin of 2.35%.The business’s revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.44 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Surgery Partners will post 0.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Surgery Partners announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 26th that permits the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 9.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jason Eric Evans sold 20,400 shares of Surgery Partners stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.47, for a total transaction of $254,388.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 920,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,477,213.42. This trade represents a 2.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO David T. Doherty sold 8,867 shares of Surgery Partners stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.50, for a total value of $110,837.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 221,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,770,987.50. The trade was a 3.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 96,896 shares of company stock valued at $1,284,058. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Surgery Partners

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in Surgery Partners by 313.1% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 930 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in Surgery Partners by 45,640.0% during the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 2,287 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 2,282 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Surgery Partners by 128.4% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 1,519 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Surgery Partners in the third quarter worth about $121,000. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in shares of Surgery Partners in the third quarter worth about $151,000.

About Surgery Partners

Surgery Partners, Inc operates as a healthcare services provider specializing in the management and ownership of ambulatory surgery centers, surgical hospitals and multispecialty rehabilitation hospitals across the United States. Through its network of facilities, the company coordinates and delivers a broad range of outpatient surgical procedures in specialties such as orthopedics, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, gastroenterology, pain management and general surgery. Its integrated platform offers ancillary services including on-site imaging, laboratory testing, infusion therapy and physical, occupational and speech rehabilitation.

Since its establishment in 2010 and subsequent public listing in 2015, Surgery Partners has focused on strategic partnerships with physicians and health systems to expand access to cost-effective outpatient care.