State of Wyoming Boosts Stock Position in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

State of Wyoming increased its stake in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC - Free Report) by 181.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,883 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,504 shares during the quarter. State of Wyoming's holdings in Encompass Health were worth $359,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in EHC. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Encompass Health by 44.7% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,737 shares of the company's stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 2,082 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Encompass Health in the fourth quarter valued at $374,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Encompass Health in the fourth quarter valued at $380,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in Encompass Health by 87.8% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 293 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH grew its position in Encompass Health by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 302,272 shares of the company's stock worth $27,915,000 after buying an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. 97.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John Patrick Darby sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.79, for a total value of $1,147,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 79,710 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,149,910.90. The trade was a 11.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Mark J. Tarr sold 118,384 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 527,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,054,817.10. This represents a 18.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 132,663 shares of company stock valued at $16,034,082. Insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Encompass Health from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays boosted their target price on Encompass Health from $118.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Encompass Health from $117.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Encompass Health from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Encompass Health presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $120.86.

Encompass Health Price Performance

EHC stock traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $118.74. 388,011 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 699,207. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $107.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.42. Encompass Health Co. has a 12 month low of $82.74 and a 12 month high of $121.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.62, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.91.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.18. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 8.48%. The firm had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.12 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.8 EPS for the current 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 paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Encompass Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.05%.

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.