02:55 PM EST, 02/29/2024 (MT Newswires) -- CFRA, an independent research provider, has provided MT Newswires with the following research alert. Analysts at CFRA have summarized their opinion as follows:

We raise our 12-month target $39 to $175, reflecting a 13.8x multiple of our 2024 EPS estimate (up $1.16 to $12.65; we start our 2025 estimate at $14.07), above UHS's three- and five-year averages of 12.5x and 12.8x, respectively, to reflect moderation in wage growth, improvement in staffing levels and patient volumes vs. the pandemic, as well as attractive valuations achieved in peer Tenet Heathcare's (THC 93 ***) recent hospital sales, which bolsters investor sentiment for the sub-industry, in our view. Q4 adj. EPS of $3.13 vs. $3.02 was $0.22 above consensus. Same-facility Acute segment adj. admissions rose 5.6% Y/Y (+7.5% for full-year 2023), while revenue per admission rose 3.7% Y/Y (-0.6%). Behavioral segment adj. admissions rose 1.4% Y/Y (+3.2%) while revenue per adj. admission rose 5.8% Y/Y (+4.7%). Consolidated adj. EBITDA margin was 12.8% vs. 13.7% in the prior-year quarter. 2024 guidance implies adj. EBITDA margin growth to 12.7% at the midpoint vs. a 12.2% margin achieved in 2023.