Argent Capital Management LLC Buys 24,471 Shares of Select Medical Holdings Co. (NYSE:SEM)

Argent Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Select Medical Holdings Co. (NYSE:SEM) by 79.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 55,144 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,471 shares during the quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Select Medical were worth $1,039,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SEM. Choreo LLC bought a new stake in Select Medical during the second quarter valued at approximately $231,000. American Century Companies Inc. bought a new stake in Select Medical during the second quarter valued at approximately $324,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new stake in Select Medical during the second quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Select Medical by 13.5% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 298,495 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $10,465,000 after purchasing an additional 35,564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Select Medical by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,498,772 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $157,728,000 after acquiring an additional 95,578 shares during the last quarter. 89.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Select Medical news, VP Robert G. Breighner, Jr. sold 4,989 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.95, for a total value of $99,530.55. Following the completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Marilyn B. Tavenner sold 32,000 shares of Select Medical stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.09, for a total transaction of $674,880.00. Following 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 17.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on SEM. StockNews.com lowered shares of Select Medical from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Benchmark lowered shares of Select Medical from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Select Medical from $40.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Select Medical from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Select Medical has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.50.

Select Medical Stock Performance

Select Medical stock opened at $19.27 on Thursday. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $24.34 and a 200-day moving average of $31.32. The firm has a market cap of $2.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.45. Select Medical Holdings Co. has a 1-year low of $18.02 and a 1-year high of $40.98.

Select Medical (NYSE:SEM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The health services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.74 billion. Select Medical had a net margin of 3.97% and a return on equity of 15.99%. Select Medical’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.46 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Select Medical Holdings Co. will post 1.97 EPS for the current year.

Select Medical Announces Dividend

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

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.