Eric Joseph Williams Sells 1,000 Shares of U.S. Physical Therapy (NYSE:USPH) Stock

Key Points

• The COO of U.S. Physical Therapy, Eric Joseph Williams, sold 1,000 shares for a total of $85,250, decreasing his ownership by 3.80%.
• U.S. Physical Therapy recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, with a yield of 2.1% and a payout ratio of 78.60%.
• Analysts project U.S. Physical Therapy to post 2.67 EPS for the current year, with an average price target of $110.25 and a "Moderate Buy" rating on the stock.

U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH - Get Free Report) COO Eric Joseph Williams sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.25, for a total transaction of $85,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 25,331 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,159,467.75. The trade was a 3.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

U.S. Physical Therapy Stock Performance

NYSE:USPH traded down $1.36 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $80.66. 95,559 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 123,019. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.22, a P/E/G ratio of 4.11 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $79.97 and a 200 day moving average of $76.50. U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $62.77 and a twelve month high of $101.19.

U.S. Physical Therapy (NYSE:USPH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $197.34 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $190.24 million. U.S. Physical Therapy had a net margin of 5.05% and a return on equity of 8.78%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.73 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. will post 2.67 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Physical Therapy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. U.S. Physical Therapy's dividend payout ratio is currently 78.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on USPH. Wall Street Zen raised shares of U.S. Physical Therapy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Barrington Research increased their price target on U.S. Physical Therapy from $98.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Zacks Research raised U.S. Physical Therapy to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $110.25.

Institutional Trading of U.S. Physical Therapy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of USPH. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 261,825 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,226,000 after purchasing an additional 32,024 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,156 shares of the company's stock valued at $546,000 after acquiring an additional 882 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 22.9% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 9,453 shares of the company's stock valued at $839,000 after acquiring an additional 1,759 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 7,458 shares of the company's stock valued at $662,000 after acquiring an additional 1,763 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in the fourth quarter valued at about $586,000.

About U.S. Physical Therapy

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.