Oxford Asset Management LLP Makes New $254,000 Investment in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

Oxford Asset Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,745 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $254,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of Encompass Health during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $68,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 5.7% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 3,509 shares of the company's stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Encompass Health by 92.9% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 16,057 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,552,000 after purchasing an additional 7,733 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Encompass Health by 22.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 700,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $67,412,000 after purchasing an additional 126,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Encompass Health by 22.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,947 shares of the company's stock worth $180,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the period. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on EHC. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $135.00 price objective (up previously from $116.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Encompass Health from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Encompass Health from $118.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $117.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $120.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John Patrick Darby sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.79, for a total transaction of $1,147,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 79,710 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,149,910.90. This trade represents a 11.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 69,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,798,129.56. The trade was a 6.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Encompass Health Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of Encompass Health stock traded down $1.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $115.98. The stock had a trading volume of 950,265 shares, compared to its average volume of 683,715. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $101.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $98.96. Encompass Health Co. has a 12-month low of $82.38 and a 12-month high of $117.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market cap of $11.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.18. Encompass Health had a net margin of 8.48% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The business had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. Encompass Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.05%.

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.