Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) Share Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Healthcare Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HCSG)’s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $19.78 and traded as high as $20.68. Healthcare Services Group shares last traded at $20.37, with a volume of 516,765 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on HCSG shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Healthcare Services Group in a report on Tuesday. Benchmark increased their price objective on Healthcare Services Group from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Zacks Research upgraded Healthcare Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Healthcare Services Group from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Healthcare Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.00.

Healthcare Services Group Stock Down 0.4%

The company has a market capitalization of $1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.22 and a beta of 0.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $20.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.78.

Healthcare Services Group (NASDAQ:HCSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.15. Healthcare Services Group had a return on equity of 17.81% and a net margin of 3.67%.The company had revenue of $462.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $479.79 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.23 earnings per share. Healthcare Services Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Healthcare Services Group, Inc. will post 1.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Healthcare Services Group

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HCSG. 8 Knots Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Healthcare Services Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $56,527,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 454.0% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,405,952 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,080,000 after acquiring an additional 1,152,176 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Healthcare Services Group by 80.2% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,981,840 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,354,000 after acquiring an additional 882,213 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Healthcare Services Group by 38.1% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,766,601 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,732,000 after purchasing an additional 487,608 shares during the period. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its position in Healthcare Services Group by 1,116.3% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 448,806 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,746,000 after purchasing an additional 411,908 shares during the period. 97.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.