Kennedy Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH)

Kennedy Capital Management LLC grew its stake in U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH - Free Report) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 79,551 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 5,496 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.53% of U.S. Physical Therapy worth $7,057,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in USPH. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in U.S. Physical Therapy by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 4,833 shares of the company's stock worth $429,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 59.8% during the fourth quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 326 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. increased its holdings in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 10,596 shares of the company's stock worth $940,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in U.S. Physical Therapy by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 16,344 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,450,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the period. Finally, Norden Group LLC grew its position in U.S. Physical Therapy by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 5,139 shares of the company's stock worth $456,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the last quarter.

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Insider Buying and Selling at U.S. Physical Therapy

In other news, COO Graham D. Reeve sold 1,730 shares of U.S. Physical Therapy stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.11, for a total transaction of $142,050.30. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 7,168 shares in the company, valued at $588,564.48. This trade represents a 19.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

U.S. Physical Therapy Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of USPH stock traded down $0.30 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $69.55. 158,100 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 105,925. The company's 50 day moving average is $77.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $85.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 73.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 1.38. U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $62.77 and a 1 year high of $108.14.

U.S. Physical Therapy (NYSE:USPH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.04). U.S. Physical Therapy had a net margin of 3.54% and a return on equity of 8.11%. The company had revenue of $180.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $173.10 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. will post 2.67 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Physical Therapy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from U.S. Physical Therapy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. U.S. Physical Therapy's payout ratio is 97.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on USPH. Citizens Jmp raised U.S. Physical Therapy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. William Blair reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Barrington Research decreased their price objective on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy from $108.00 to $98.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Bank of America upgraded shares of U.S. Physical Therapy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $115.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, JMP Securities began coverage on U.S. Physical Therapy in a report on Monday, December 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $113.00 price target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $109.00.

U.S. Physical Therapy 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.