Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) Reaches New 52-Week High - What's Next?

Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $121.44 and last traded at $121.15, with a volume of 543136 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $120.87.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on EHC shares. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Encompass Health from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. 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 note on Monday, April 28th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Encompass Health from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Encompass Health from $118.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Encompass Health currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $120.86.

Encompass Health Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $11.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a fifty day moving average of $107.85 and a 200-day moving average of $101.42. 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 (NYSE:EHC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.18. The business 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 revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Encompass Health's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.05%.

Insider Transactions at Encompass Health

In other news, insider Elissa Joy Charbonneau sold 4,279 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.61, for a total value of $498,974.19. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,958 shares in the company, valued at $1,394,422.38. This represents a 26.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Mark J. Tarr sold 118,384 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.53, for a total value of $14,387,207.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 527,070 shares of the company's stock, valued at $64,054,817.10. The trade was a 18.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 132,663 shares of company stock valued at $16,034,082 in the last three months. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Encompass Health

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EHC. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Encompass Health by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,404,081 shares of the company's stock valued at $960,817,000 after buying an additional 138,196 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Encompass Health by 5.1% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,818,783 shares of the company's stock valued at $589,326,000 after purchasing an additional 282,532 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Encompass Health by 25.6% in the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,080,918 shares of the company's stock valued at $210,756,000 after purchasing an additional 424,691 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in shares of Encompass Health by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,076,869 shares of the company's stock valued at $191,799,000 after purchasing an additional 117,617 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Encompass Health by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,973,846 shares of the company's stock valued at $182,285,000 after purchasing an additional 15,831 shares during the last quarter. 97.25% of the stock is currently 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.