Select Medical (NYSE:SEM) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Select Medical Holdings Co. (NYSE:SEM - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $17.68, but opened at $18.19. Select Medical shares last traded at $18.38, with a volume of 257,777 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SEM has been the subject of several research reports. Benchmark raised shares of Select Medical from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $23.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Select Medical from $47.00 to $23.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Select Medical from $40.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Select Medical from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $27.25.

Select Medical Price Performance

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $19.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.65. The stock has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a PE ratio of 11.20, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Select Medical (NYSE:SEM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The health services provider reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. Select Medical had a return on equity of 14.04% and a net margin of 3.23%. On average, equities analysts expect that Select Medical Holdings Co. will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Select Medical Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Select Medical's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Select Medical news, VP Robert G. Breighner, Jr. sold 4,989 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.95, for a total transaction of $99,530.55. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 30,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $605,602.20. This represents a 14.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 17.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SEM. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Select Medical during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,556,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Select Medical by 2,552.7% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,596,414 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $30,092,000 after purchasing an additional 1,536,234 shares in the last quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Select Medical by 404.8% during the 4th quarter. Hood River Capital Management LLC now owns 1,755,733 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $33,096,000 after purchasing an additional 1,407,902 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Select Medical by 144.2% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,059,791 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $71,825,000 after purchasing an additional 1,216,263 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Select Medical by 48.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,643,943 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $49,838,000 after purchasing an additional 864,852 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.48% of the company's stock.

About Select Medical

Select Medical Holdings Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates critical illness recovery hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals, outpatient rehabilitation clinics, and occupational health centers in the United States. It operates in four segments: Critical Illness Recovery Hospital, Rehabilitation Hospital, Outpatient Rehabilitation, and Concentra.