U.S. Physical Therapy (NYSE:USPH) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $93.46, but opened at $96.21. U.S. Physical Therapy shares last traded at $95.81, with a volume of 9,871 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on USPH shares. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $108.00 target price on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. JMP Securities started coverage on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in a research note on Monday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $113.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on U.S. Physical Therapy from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Citizens Jmp upgraded U.S. Physical Therapy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded U.S. Physical Therapy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $114.00.

U.S. Physical Therapy Trading Down 0.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.78. The stock has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.04, a PEG ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 1.46. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $89.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.85.

U.S. Physical Therapy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. U.S. Physical Therapy’s payout ratio is currently 187.23%.

Insider Activity

In other U.S. Physical Therapy news, Director Nancy Ham sold 1,172 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.72, for a total transaction of $113,355.84. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,112 shares in the company, valued at $107,552.64. This trade represents a 51.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Bernard A. Harris, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of U.S. Physical Therapy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.95, for a total value of $185,900.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,554,681.70. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,412 shares of company stock worth $706,605. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On U.S. Physical Therapy

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its position in U.S. Physical Therapy by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 2,824 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 18.6% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,188 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 7,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $702,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Martin Capital Advisors LLP raised its position in U.S. Physical Therapy by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Martin Capital Advisors LLP now owns 13,138 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,112,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in U.S. Physical Therapy in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000.

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.