Arizona State Retirement System Purchases 212 Shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 29,204 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 212 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Encompass Health were worth $2,697,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 2,458.5% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 869,104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,990,000 after purchasing an additional 835,135 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new position in Encompass Health during the fourth quarter worth approximately $52,094,000. abrdn plc bought a new stake in Encompass Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $17,846,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 26.0% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 760,496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,494,000 after buying an additional 156,938 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 22.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 700,021 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,412,000 after acquiring an additional 126,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

Encompass Health Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:EHC opened at $99.20 on Monday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $96.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $96.80. Encompass Health Co. has a 1 year low of $74.27 and a 1 year high of $104.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $9.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.92.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.12. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 8.48%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Encompass Health’s payout ratio is presently 15.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Encompass Health news, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.29, for a total transaction of $495,578.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 69,164 shares in the company, valued at $6,798,129.56. This represents a 6.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on EHC shares. KeyCorp raised their price target on Encompass Health from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Encompass Health from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Encompass Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $107.67.

About Encompass Health

Encompass Health Corporation provides post-acute healthcare services in the United States and Puerto Rico. It owns and operates inpatient rehabilitation hospitals that provide medical, nursing, therapy, and ancillary services. The company provides specialized rehabilitative treatment on an inpatient basis to patients who have experienced physical or cognitive disabilities or injuries due to medical conditions, such as strokes, hip fractures, and various debilitating neurological conditions.