U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the five analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $114.00.

USPH has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on U.S. Physical Therapy from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $108.00 price objective on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Citizens Jmp raised shares of U.S. Physical Therapy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. JMP Securities started coverage on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $113.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America upgraded U.S. Physical Therapy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th.

U.S. Physical Therapy Stock Down 2.3 %

NYSE:USPH opened at $86.99 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of 92.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 1.48. U.S. Physical Therapy has a 52 week low of $76.18 and a 52 week high of $113.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $92.83 and a 200-day moving average of $89.05.

U.S. Physical Therapy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. U.S. Physical Therapy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 187.23%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Eric Joseph Williams sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.84, for a total transaction of $191,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 14,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,419,773.76. This trade represents a 11.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Carey P. Hendrickson sold 516 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.25, for a total transaction of $49,665.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 20,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,970,141.25. This trade represents a 2.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 7,412 shares of company stock worth $706,605 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of U.S. Physical Therapy

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 2,808.3% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 349 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 1,291.9% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 68.6% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 774 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its stake in U.S. Physical Therapy by 74.5% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 958 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares in the last quarter.

U.S. Physical Therapy Company Profile

U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc operates outpatient physical therapy clinics. The company operates through Physical Therapy Operations and Industrial Injury Prevention Services segments. The company provides pre-and post-operative care and treatment for orthopedic-related disorders, sports-related injuries, preventative care, rehabilitation of injured workers, and neurological-related injuries.