Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Buys 62,585 Shares of Select Medical Holdings Co. (NYSE:SEM)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Select Medical Holdings Co. (NYSE:SEM) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,431,469 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 62,585 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Select Medical were worth $83,533,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Select Medical by 179.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,296 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,473 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Select Medical in the 3rd quarter valued at $81,000. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in Select Medical by 33.5% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,955 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 1,244 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in Select Medical during the fourth quarter worth $191,000. Finally, Vista Finance LLC bought a new position in shares of Select Medical in the fourth quarter valued at $193,000. 89.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Select Medical from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Mizuho assumed coverage on Select Medical in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group cut their target price on Select Medical from $40.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Select Medical from $47.00 to $23.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Benchmark upgraded Select Medical from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $23.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.80.

Select Medical Stock Performance

SEM stock opened at $18.45 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The firm has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a PE ratio of 11.18, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a 50 day moving average of $17.00 and a 200-day moving average of $22.10. Select Medical Holdings Co. has a 12-month low of $14.99 and a 12-month high of $40.98.

Select Medical (NYSE:SEM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The health services provider reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. Select Medical had a net margin of 3.23% and a return on equity of 14.04%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Select Medical Holdings Co. will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Select Medical Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Select Medical’s payout ratio is 15.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO David S. Chernow sold 225,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total value of $4,050,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 714,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,861,288. This represents a 23.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 11.60% 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.