70,341 Shares in U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH) Purchased by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE:USPH - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 70,341 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,240,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.47% of U.S. Physical Therapy at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of USPH. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 3,200.0% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 726 shares of the company's stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 704 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in U.S. Physical Therapy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $113,000. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in U.S. Physical Therapy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $203,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 57.1% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 2,631 shares of the company's stock worth $223,000 after purchasing an additional 956 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of U.S. Physical Therapy by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 3,293 shares of the company's stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 653 shares during the period.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Graham D. Reeve sold 1,730 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 7,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at $588,564.48. This represents a 19.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on USPH shares. William Blair reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in a report on Thursday, February 27th. JMP Securities started coverage on shares of U.S. Physical Therapy in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $113.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on U.S. Physical Therapy from $120.00 to $110.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Barrington Research cut their price objective on 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. Finally, StockNews.com lowered U.S. Physical Therapy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $109.00.

U.S. Physical Therapy Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:USPH traded down $1.14 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $71.92. 86,528 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 103,162. The company has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a PE ratio of 76.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a current ratio of 1.78. U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $71.08 and a 52-week high of $113.63. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $83.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $86.63.

U.S. Physical Therapy (NYSE:USPH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $180.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $173.10 million. U.S. Physical Therapy had a return on equity of 8.11% and a net margin of 3.54%. As a group, research analysts predict that U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. will post 2.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Physical Therapy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This is a positive change from U.S. Physical Therapy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. U.S. Physical Therapy's dividend payout ratio is currently 97.83%.

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.