Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on EHC. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. UBS Group increased their target price on Encompass Health from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Raymond James Financial set a $150.00 target price on Encompass Health in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Encompass Health from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $148.50.

Encompass Health Trading Down 4.9%

Shares of EHC opened at $121.64 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $122.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $111.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.74. Encompass Health has a 1-year low of $92.77 and a 1-year high of $129.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.07. Encompass Health had a net margin of 10.01% and a return on equity of 18.08%. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Encompass Health has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.250 EPS. Analysts expect that Encompass Health will post 6.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Encompass Health Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 1st were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This is an increase from Encompass Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 1st. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encompass Health

In related news, CEO Mark J. Tarr sold 173,148 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.47, for a total transaction of $21,724,879.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 267,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,602,622.58. This trade represents a 39.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Darby sold 8,906 shares of Encompass Health stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.95, for a total value of $1,121,710.70. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 75,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,451,413.95. The trade was a 10.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 186,912 shares of company stock worth $23,434,845. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Encompass Health in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,059,762,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the second quarter valued at approximately $116,352,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the second quarter valued at approximately $81,676,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the second quarter valued at approximately $79,660,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the second quarter worth $38,677,000. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.