Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) traded at a new 52-week high today of $12.96. Approximately 532,000 shares have changed hands today, as compared to an average 30-day volume of 1.1 million shares.

Based on a current price of $12.92, Medical Properties Trust is currently 5.2% above its average consensus analyst price target of $12.25. The stock should discover initial support at its 50-day moving average (MA) of $11.84 and subsequent support at its 200-day MA of $10.32.

Medical Properties Trust Inc. is a self-advised real estate investment trust formed to acquire and develop net-leased healthcare facilities. These facilities include inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, long-term acute care hospitals, regional acute care hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, and other single-discipline healthcare facilities such as heart hospitals.

In the past 52 weeks, Medical Properties Trust share prices have been bracketed by a low of $8.65 and a high of $12.96 and are now at $12.92, 49% above that low price. In the last five trading sessions, the 50-day moving average (MA) has climbed 0.6% while the 200-day MA has risen 0.5%.

SmarTrend recommended that subscribers consider buying shares of Medical Properties Trust on July 5th, 2012 as our proprietary SmarTrend analytics indicated a new Uptrend was in progress when shares hit $9.74. Since that recommendation, shares of Medical Properties Trust have risen 31.7%. We continue to monitor MPW for any potential shift so investors can protect gains and will alert SmarTrend subscribers immediately.