Select Medical (NYSE:SEM) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Select Medical (NYSE:SEM) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Wednesday morning.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on SEM. Benchmark downgraded Select Medical from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Select Medical from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Select Medical from $40.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $39.50.

Select Medical Price Performance

SEM opened at $19.27 on Wednesday. Select Medical has a twelve month low of $18.02 and a twelve month high of $40.98. The firm has a market cap of $2.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.00, a PEG ratio of 0.61 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. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.32.

Select Medical (NYSE:SEM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The health services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.07. Select Medical had a return on equity of 15.99% and a net margin of 3.97%. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Select Medical will post 1.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Select Medical Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were issued a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. Select Medical’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.36%.

Insider Activity

In other Select Medical news, Director Marilyn B. Tavenner sold 32,000 shares of Select Medical stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.09, for a total value of $674,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 22,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $463,980. The trade was a 59.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Robert G. Breighner, Jr. sold 4,989 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.95, for a total transaction of $99,530.55. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 30,356 shares in the company, valued at $605,602.20. This trade represents a 14.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 17.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Select Medical

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Select Medical during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in Select Medical during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale acquired a new stake in Select Medical in the second quarter worth $60,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Select Medical by 16.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,313 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Select Medical during the third quarter valued at $81,000. 89.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Select Medical Company Profile

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.