Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $156.00 price target (up from $150.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $147.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $144.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Encompass Health from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $154.25.

Encompass Health Price Performance

Shares of Encompass Health stock opened at $137.28 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Encompass Health has a twelve month low of $92.77 and a twelve month high of $138.35. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $123.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $110.17. The firm has a market cap of $13.54 billion, a PE ratio of 21.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.74.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.16. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 18.62% and a net margin of 10.17%. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. Encompass Health’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Encompass Health will post 6.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 4th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 4th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Encompass Health’s payout ratio is presently 13.12%.

Insider Transactions at Encompass Health

In related news, CEO Mark Tarr sold 173,148 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.47, for a total value of $21,724,879.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 267,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,602,622.58. This represents a 39.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John Darby sold 4,858 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.09, for a total transaction of $588,255.22. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 75,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,086,714.69. The trade was a 6.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 186,912 shares of company stock valued at $23,434,845 in the last three months. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Encompass Health

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EHC. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,059,762,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Encompass Health by 3.1% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,674,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,013,000 after acquiring an additional 50,647 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Encompass Health during the second quarter worth $116,352,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Encompass Health by 1.6% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,182,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $114,390,000 after purchasing an additional 18,740 shares during the period. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC raised its position in Encompass Health by 16.8% in the first quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 892,823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,363,000 after purchasing an additional 128,120 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

Encompass Health Company Profile

Encompass Health Corporation (NYSE:EHC) is a healthcare services company that operates inpatient rehabilitation hospitals in the United States and Puerto Rico. Its hospitals provide intensive rehabilitation to patients recovering from conditions such as stroke, brain and spinal cord injuries, neurological disorders, amputations, hip fractures and other serious illnesses or injuries.

The company’s services typically include nursing care, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, respiratory therapy and medical management.