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

Shares of U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $97.50.

Several research firms have recently commented on USPH. Jefferies Financial Group raised U.S. Physical Therapy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Zacks Research raised U.S. Physical Therapy from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Barrington Research decreased their price objective on U.S. Physical Therapy from $103.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $98.00 price objective on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in a report on Friday, May 29th.

Insider Transactions at U.S. Physical Therapy

In other U.S. Physical Therapy news, Director Peter Francis Minan acquired 492 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $63.14 per share, with a total value of $31,064.88. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $184,558.22. This represents a 20.24% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On U.S. Physical Therapy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in U.S. Physical Therapy by 106.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 109,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,331,000 after purchasing an additional 56,752 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in U.S. Physical Therapy by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 370,707 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,949,000 after purchasing an additional 24,848 shares in the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 47.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 474,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,325,000 after acquiring an additional 153,054 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 172.7% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 28,676 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,239,000 after acquiring an additional 18,159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP lifted its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 582.7% during the 4th quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 41,284 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,224,000 after acquiring an additional 35,237 shares during the last quarter.

U.S. Physical Therapy Stock Up 3.5%

NYSE:USPH opened at $68.65 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 137.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.16. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $66.02 and a 200-day moving average of $75.61. U.S. Physical Therapy has a 52 week low of $58.19 and a 52 week high of $93.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

U.S. Physical Therapy (NYSE:USPH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $198.29 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $200.94 million. U.S. Physical Therapy had a net margin of 4.36% and a return on equity of 8.81%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.48 earnings per share. Analysts predict that U.S. Physical Therapy will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Physical Therapy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. U.S. Physical Therapy’s dividend payout ratio is 368.00%.

About U.S. Physical Therapy

U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc (NYSE: USPH) is a leading owner and operator of outpatient physical therapy clinics across the United States. The company delivers rehabilitative care to patients recovering from orthopedic injuries, neurological disorders and chronic conditions. Its core services include one-on-one physical therapy sessions, aquatic therapy, occupational therapy, massage therapy and sports medicine programs designed to restore mobility and enhance quality of life.

In addition to traditional rehabilitation services, U.S.