Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.17

Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, July 24th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be paid a dividend of 0.17 per share on Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This is a boost from Encompass Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15.

Encompass Health has decreased its dividend payment by an average of 18.8% annually over the last three years. Encompass Health has a payout ratio of 14.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Encompass Health to earn $4.63 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.68 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 14.7%.

Encompass Health Stock Down 1.2 %

EHC stock opened at $96.01 on Monday. Encompass Health has a one year low of $57.55 and a one year high of $97.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.35. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.00 and a 200-day moving average of $86.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.67 billion, a PE ratio of 25.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.88.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.30 billion. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.83% and a net margin of 7.88%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.95 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Encompass Health will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Douglas E. Coltharp sold 12,260 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.34, for a total value of $1,058,528.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 136,227 shares in the company, valued at $11,761,839.18. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Encompass Health declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EHC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Encompass Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. UBS Group upped their price target on Encompass Health from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Encompass Health from $113.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $102.88.

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.