Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) Given New $108.00 Price Target at Truist Financial

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) had its price target increased by Truist Financial from $104.00 to $108.00 in a report published on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on EHC. Stephens reissued an overweight rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $113.00 to $109.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday. They set an overweight rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated coverage on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. They issued an outperform rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Encompass Health presently has a consensus rating of Buy and an average price target of $104.67.

Encompass Health Stock Performance

EHC stock opened at $96.26 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $91.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $87.44. Encompass Health has a 1-year low of $57.55 and a 1-year high of $97.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market cap of $9.69 billion, a PE ratio of 26.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.88.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.30 billion. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.83% and a net margin of 7.88%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Encompass Health will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Encompass Health Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. This is a boost from Encompass Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Encompass Health’s payout ratio is 18.38%.

Encompass Health declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Encompass Health

In other Encompass Health news, CFO Douglas E. Coltharp sold 12,260 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.34, for a total transaction of $1,058,528.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 136,227 shares in the company, valued at $11,761,839.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 379.7% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 578,349 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,587,000 after buying an additional 457,796 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 5.8% during 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 last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,997,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $667,002,000 after buying an additional 450,081 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $496,000 after buying an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 31.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 616 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

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.