Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Increases Stock Position in Select Medical Holdings Co. (NYSE:SEM)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Select Medical Holdings Co. (NYSE:SEM - Free Report) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,431,469 shares of the health services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 62,585 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 3.42% of Select Medical worth $83,533,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Select Medical by 179.0% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,296 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 1,473 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Select Medical in the 3rd quarter worth about $81,000. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Select Medical by 33.5% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,955 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 1,244 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new position in Select Medical during the fourth quarter valued at about $191,000. Finally, Vista Finance LLC purchased a new stake in Select Medical during the fourth quarter worth about $193,000. Institutional investors own 89.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO David S. Chernow sold 225,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total transaction of $4,050,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 714,516 shares in the company, valued at $12,861,288. This represents a 23.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 11.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Select Medical from $47.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Benchmark upgraded Select Medical from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $23.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Mizuho assumed coverage on Select Medical in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Select Medical from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $26.80.

Select Medical Stock Up 5.6 %

Shares of SEM stock traded up $0.80 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $15.06. 1,498,395 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 851,768. Select Medical Holdings Co. has a 12-month low of $14.03 and a 12-month high of $40.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $16.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $21.65. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.09, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.38.

Select Medical (NYSE:SEM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The health services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.01). Select Medical had a return on equity of 14.04% and a net margin of 3.23%. The business had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.75 EPS. Select Medical's revenue for the quarter was down 24.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Select Medical Holdings Co. will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.

Select Medical announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the health services provider to reacquire up to 42.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Select Medical Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Select Medical's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.15%.

Select Medical Company Profile

Select Medical Holdings Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates critical illness recovery hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals, outpatient rehabilitation clinics, and occupational health centers in the United States. It operates in four segments: Critical Illness Recovery Hospital, Rehabilitation Hospital, Outpatient Rehabilitation, and Concentra.