Foster & Motley Inc. Buys New Shares in Encompass Health Corporation $EHC

Foster & Motley Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Encompass Health Corporation (NYSE:EHC) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 10,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,089,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 21.5% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 88,470 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,960,000 after purchasing an additional 15,677 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 38.4% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 92,197 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,338,000 after buying an additional 25,574 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in Encompass Health in the 1st quarter worth approximately $259,000. Walleye Capital LLC raised its position in Encompass Health by 667.6% during the second quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 6,522 shares of the company’s stock valued at $800,000 after acquiring an additional 7,671 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new stake in Encompass Health during the second quarter worth $588,000. 97.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Mark J. Tarr sold 173,148 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.47, for a total transaction of $21,724,879.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 267,814 shares in the company, valued at $33,602,622.58. This represents a 39.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Patrick Darby sold 8,906 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.95, for a total value of $1,121,710.70. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 75,041 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,451,413.95. This trade represents a 10.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EHC has been the topic of several analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Encompass Health from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Encompass Health from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Leerink Partners set a $152.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Encompass Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Encompass Health from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $148.71.

Encompass Health Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of EHC stock opened at $121.95 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.72. Encompass Health Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $92.77 and a fifty-two week high of $127.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $106.10.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.07. Encompass Health had a net margin of 10.01% and a return on equity of 18.08%. The business had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Encompass Health has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.020-6.250 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Encompass Health Corporation will post 6.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 1st will be paid a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 1st. This is a positive change from Encompass Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.38%.

About Encompass Health

Encompass Health Corporation is a leading provider of post?acute healthcare services in the United States, operating a comprehensive network of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and home health and hospice agencies. Its inpatient rehabilitation hospitals offer intensive therapy programs for patients recovering from conditions such as stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury, cardiac and pulmonary disorders, and orthopedic procedures. Through its home health segment, Encompass Health delivers skilled nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy to patients in the comfort of their homes, while its hospice services provide end?of?life care focused on symptom management and emotional support for patients and families.

Founded in 1984 as HealthSouth Corporation and rebranded as Encompass Health in 2018, the company has grown organically and through acquisitions to serve patients across more than 30 states.