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

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

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on EHC. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Encompass Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised shares of Encompass Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $142.86.

Encompass Health Stock Performance

Shares of EHC opened at $102.70 on Friday. Encompass Health has a 52-week low of $90.67 and a 52-week high of $127.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of $10.33 billion, a PE ratio of 19.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $116.83.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 16th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.84% and a net margin of 9.33%.The business had revenue of $136.30 million for the quarter. Equities research analysts predict that Encompass Health will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd will be issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.37%.

Institutional Trading of Encompass Health

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EHC. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 21.5% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 88,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,960,000 after purchasing an additional 15,677 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Encompass Health by 38.4% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 92,197 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,338,000 after buying an additional 25,574 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Encompass Health by 25.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,119,259 shares of the company’s stock valued at $113,359,000 after acquiring an additional 224,477 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the 1st quarter valued at $259,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in Encompass Health by 6.2% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 390,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,549,000 after buying an additional 22,896 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

About Encompass Health

Encompass Health Corporation is a leading provider of post‐acute healthcare services in the United States, operating a comprehensive network of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and home health and hospice agencies. Its inpatient rehabilitation hospitals offer intensive therapy programs for patients recovering from conditions such as stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury, cardiac and pulmonary disorders, and orthopedic procedures. Through its home health segment, Encompass Health delivers skilled nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy to patients in the comfort of their homes, while its hospice services provide end‐of‐life care focused on symptom management and emotional support for patients and families.

Founded in 1984 as HealthSouth Corporation and rebranded as Encompass Health in 2018, the company has grown organically and through acquisitions to serve patients across more than 30 states.