Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) Shares Sold by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA decreased its holdings in shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,110,521 shares of the company’s stock after selling 623 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in Encompass Health were worth $102,557,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EHC. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Encompass Health in the fourth quarter valued at $100,637,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Encompass Health during the fourth quarter worth about $77,944,000. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $52,094,000. abrdn plc acquired a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $17,846,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Encompass Health by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,404,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $960,817,000 after buying an additional 138,196 shares during the last quarter. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays increased their price objective on Encompass Health from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Encompass Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Encompass Health presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $107.67.

Encompass Health Stock Down 3.7 %

Encompass Health stock opened at $98.14 on Friday. Encompass Health Co. has a fifty-two week low of $78.53 and a fifty-two week high of $104.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $99.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.05.

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

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of the 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 69,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,798,129.56. This trade represents a 6.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.