Millennium Management LLC Increases Position in Select Medical Holdings Co. (NYSE:SEM)

Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Select Medical Holdings Co. (NYSE:SEM - Free Report) by 540.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 294,642 shares of the health services provider's stock after buying an additional 248,631 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned approximately 0.23% of Select Medical worth $5,554,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SEM. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Select Medical by 179.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,296 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 1,473 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Select Medical by 33.5% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,955 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 1,244 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Select Medical by 47.8% during the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 6,974 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $130,000 after purchasing an additional 2,255 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Select Medical by 963.0% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 9,078 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 8,224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HBK Investments L P purchased a new stake in shares of Select Medical during the fourth quarter worth about $188,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on SEM. Mizuho began coverage on Select Medical in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen raised Select Medical from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Benchmark raised Select Medical from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $23.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Select Medical from $23.00 to $19.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $26.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO David S. Chernow sold 225,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total transaction of $4,050,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 714,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,861,288. This trade represents a 23.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Parvinderjit S. Khanuja purchased 21,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $15.02 per share, with a total value of $315,420.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 65,089 shares in the company, valued at $977,636.78. The trade was a 47.63% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 11.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Select Medical Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:SEM traded up $0.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $15.32. The company had a trading volume of 1,458,596 shares, compared to its average volume of 929,968. The stock has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.40. Select Medical Holdings Co. has a one year low of $14.03 and a one year high of $40.98. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

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

Select Medical Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. Select Medical's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.66%.

Select Medical declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the health services provider to purchase up to 42.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.