Bellevue Group AG Acquires 169,289 Shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

Bellevue Group AG raised its holdings in shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC - Free Report) by 880.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 188,522 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 169,289 shares during the quarter. Bellevue Group AG owned about 0.19% of Encompass Health worth $17,410,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its holdings in Encompass Health by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 6,545 shares of the company's stock valued at $605,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Encompass Health by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 804,029 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,252,000 after buying an additional 6,557 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC lifted its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 173,144 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,990,000 after buying an additional 22,574 shares during the period. Ancora Advisors LLC increased its stake in Encompass Health by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 47,530 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,389,000 after acquiring an additional 430 shares during the period. Finally, Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Encompass Health by 22.7% in the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 88,696 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,191,000 after acquiring an additional 16,410 shares in the last quarter. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Encompass Health Price Performance

Encompass Health stock traded up $0.71 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $117.02. 732,199 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 686,724. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.91. 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $82.74 and a 12 month high of $117.98. The business's 50-day moving average is $102.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.52.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.18. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 8.48%. The company had revenue of $1.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect 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, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Encompass Health's payout ratio is 14.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EHC has been the topic of a number of research reports. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Encompass Health from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Encompass Health from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $135.00 target price (up previously from $116.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Encompass Health from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $120.86.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John Patrick Darby sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.79, for a total value of $1,147,900.00. Following 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of the business's 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 69,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,798,129.56. This trade represents a 6.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Encompass Health 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.