Royce & Associates LP Purchases 28,190 Shares of Select Medical Holdings Corporation (NYSE:SEM)

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP increased its holdings in Select Medical Holdings Corporation by 7.6% in the first quarter, owning 401,355 shares valued at approximately $6.7 million.
• Several institutional investors made significant changes to their positions in Select Medical during the fourth quarter, with notable increases from The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company and Hood River Capital Management, boosting their stakes by over 2,500% and 400%, respectively.
• Select Medical's board approved a stock repurchase plan to buy back $1.0 billion worth of shares, which represents a significant indication of the company's belief in the undervaluation of its stock.

Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in Select Medical Holdings Corporation (NYSE:SEM - Free Report) by 7.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 401,355 shares of the health services provider's stock after buying an additional 28,190 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned 0.31% of Select Medical worth $6,703,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Select Medical by 151.0% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 37,684 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $629,000 after buying an additional 22,671 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Select Medical by 47.5% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 24,450 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $403,000 after buying an additional 7,871 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Select Medical in the first quarter valued at about $416,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Select Medical by 217.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,501 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $109,000 after buying an additional 4,453 shares during the period. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management bought a new stake in Select Medical in the first quarter worth approximately $460,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.48% of the company's stock.

Select Medical Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE SEM traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $14.31. 78,017 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,111,572. The company has a market cap of $1.84 billion, a PE ratio of 10.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.32. Select Medical Holdings Corporation has a one year low of $14.00 and a one year high of $40.98. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $14.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Select Medical (NYSE:SEM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The health services provider reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. Select Medical had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 11.04%. The company's revenue was down 24.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.75 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Select Medical Holdings Corporation will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.

Select Medical declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the health services provider to buy up to 42.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Select Medical Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Select Medical's payout ratio is 18.66%.

Insider Activity

In other Select Medical news, Director Parvinderjit S. Khanuja acquired 21,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $15.02 per share, with a total value of $315,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 65,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $977,636.78. This trade represents a 47.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 11.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SEM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Select Medical from $23.00 to $19.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Mizuho initiated coverage on Select Medical in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $26.00.

About Select Medical

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.