Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Has $9.34 Million Stock Position in U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its stake in U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH) by 95.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 100,315 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 49,013 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in U.S. Physical Therapy were worth $9,343,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in U.S. Physical Therapy in the 3rd quarter valued at $82,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in the third quarter valued at about $232,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 9,269.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $253,000 after buying an additional 2,688 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 47.2% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,773 shares of the company’s stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 889 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Channing Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in U.S. Physical Therapy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $286,000.

Insider Activity at U.S. Physical Therapy

In other U.S. Physical Therapy news, COO Graham D. Reeve sold 2,629 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.39, for a total transaction of $274,441.31. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 6,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $720,499.78. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other U.S. Physical Therapy news, Director Edward L. Kuntz sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.26, for a total value of $260,650.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,780 shares in the company, valued at $602,622.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Graham D. Reeve sold 2,629 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.39, for a total transaction of $274,441.31. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 6,902 shares in the company, valued at $720,499.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,829 shares of company stock worth $1,141,535. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of U.S. Physical Therapy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Barrington Research raised their target price 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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 research note on Wednesday, March 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, U.S. Physical Therapy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.67.

U.S. Physical Therapy Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of U.S. Physical Therapy stock traded up $0.35 on Friday, reaching $100.73. 30,485 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 69,594. The company has a market capitalization of $1.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.62, a PEG ratio of 4.92 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 2.28, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. has a one year low of $78.08 and a one year high of $124.11. The company has a 50-day moving average of $105.04 and a 200 day moving average of $95.35.

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

U.S. Physical Therapy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. This is a boost from U.S. Physical Therapy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. U.S. Physical Therapy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 130.37%.

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.