Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Friday morning.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on EHC. 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. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $135.00 price target (up previously from $116.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Encompass Health from $117.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Encompass Health from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $127.00.

Encompass Health Price Performance

EHC traded down $1.17 during trading on Friday, reaching $120.37. 542,825 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 701,360. 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 has a 12-month low of $82.74 and a 12-month high of $123.13. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $112.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $102.93. The company has a market cap of $12.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.99, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.89.

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

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Encompass Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encompass Health

In other news, insider Elissa Joy Charbonneau sold 4,279 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.61, for a total transaction of $498,974.19. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,958 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,394,422.38. The trade was a 26.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John Patrick Darby sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 79,710 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,149,910.90. This represents a 11.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 132,663 shares of company stock worth $16,034,082 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Encompass Health

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $152,953,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $100,637,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $77,944,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the first quarter valued at approximately $50,665,000. Finally, Farallon Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Encompass Health by 15,266.7% in the fourth quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 461,000 shares of the company's stock worth $42,573,000 after acquiring an additional 458,000 shares during the period. 97.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.