U.S. Physical Therapy (NYSE:USPH) Hits New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH) shares hit a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $69.99 and last traded at $70.70, with a volume of 2506 shares. The stock had previously closed at $71.93.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy from $120.00 to $110.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Citizens Jmp raised shares of U.S. Physical Therapy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Bank of America raised shares of U.S. Physical Therapy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $100.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barrington Research decreased their target price on U.S. Physical Therapy from $108.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, JMP Securities began coverage on U.S. Physical Therapy in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $113.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $109.00.

U.S. Physical Therapy Stock Up 0.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.78. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $86.44. The stock has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a PE ratio of 77.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 1.51.

U.S. Physical Therapy (NYSE:USPH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $180.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $173.10 million. U.S. Physical Therapy had a net margin of 3.54% and a return on equity of 8.11%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. will post 2.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Physical Therapy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from U.S. Physical Therapy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. U.S. Physical Therapy’s payout ratio is presently 97.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Graham D. Reeve sold 1,730 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.11, for a total transaction of $142,050.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 7,168 shares in the company, valued at approximately $588,564.48. This represents a 19.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On U.S. Physical Therapy

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 59.8% in the fourth quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in U.S. Physical Therapy during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in U.S. Physical Therapy by 3,200.0% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 726 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in the fourth quarter valued at about $84,000. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in the fourth quarter worth about $113,000.

About U.S. Physical Therapy

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.