U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH) Given Consensus Rating of "Buy" by Brokerages

U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Buy" by the four analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $125.67.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on USPH shares. Barrington Research increased their price target on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of U.S. Physical Therapy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy from $99.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th.

U.S. Physical Therapy Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE USPH traded down $0.23 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $106.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 35,045 shares, compared to its average volume of 69,504. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $103.47 and a 200 day moving average of $94.68. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. U.S. Physical Therapy has a twelve month low of $78.08 and a twelve month high of $124.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 79.13, a PEG ratio of 5.05 and a beta of 1.39.

U.S. Physical Therapy (NYSE:USPH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.02. U.S. Physical Therapy had a return on equity of 8.52% and a net margin of 4.67%. The business had revenue of $154.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $150.24 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.58 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that U.S. Physical Therapy will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Physical Therapy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 11th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. This is a positive change from U.S. Physical Therapy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. U.S. Physical Therapy's payout ratio is presently 130.37%.

Insider Transactions at U.S. Physical Therapy

In related news, Director Clayton Trier sold 400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.00, for a total value of $42,800.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $749,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Clayton Trier sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.00, for a total transaction of $42,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at $749,000. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Carey P. Hendrickson sold 1,800 shares of U.S. Physical Therapy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.28, for a total value of $193,104.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 21,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,272,834.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,829 shares of company stock valued at $1,141,535 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in USPH. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in U.S. Physical Therapy by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,036,203 shares of the company's stock valued at $95,051,000 after buying an additional 17,156 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its holdings in U.S. Physical Therapy by 12.1% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 384,936 shares of the company's stock worth $35,310,000 after acquiring an additional 41,414 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its position in U.S. Physical Therapy by 6.8% during the third quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 770,613 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,688,000 after purchasing an additional 49,155 shares during the last quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. bought a new position in U.S. Physical Therapy in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,073,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 7,509 shares of the company's stock worth $689,000 after purchasing an additional 1,252 shares during the last quarter.

U.S. Physical Therapy Company Profile

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.