Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Lowers Position in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. decreased its position in shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) by 8.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,468,177 shares of the company’s stock after selling 129,865 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Encompass Health were worth $125,955,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EHC. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Encompass Health by 1.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,166,147 shares of the company’s stock worth $839,520,000 after purchasing an additional 169,113 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Encompass Health by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,215,770 shares of the company’s stock worth $548,156,000 after buying an additional 449,230 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 16.0% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,283,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $188,586,000 after acquiring an additional 314,488 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Encompass Health by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,819,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,083,000 after acquiring an additional 22,311 shares during the period. Finally, 8 Knots Management LLC boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 14.0% during the first quarter. 8 Knots Management LLC now owns 1,288,815 shares of the company’s stock worth $106,430,000 after acquiring an additional 158,356 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Encompass Health

In related news, CFO Douglas E. Coltharp sold 12,260 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.34, for a total value of $1,058,528.40. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 136,227 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,761,839.18. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on EHC shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Encompass Health from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Encompass Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $113.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Leerink Partners began coverage on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $100.38.

Encompass Health Stock Up 0.6 %

EHC opened at $92.65 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.04, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $90.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $85.25. Encompass Health Co. has a twelve month low of $57.55 and a twelve month high of $94.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.30 billion. Encompass Health had a net margin of 7.88% and a return on equity of 17.83%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Encompass Health announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, July 24th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Encompass Health Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This is an increase from Encompass Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.38%.

Encompass Health Company Profile

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.