Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 1,608 Shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

Retirement Systems of Alabama reduced its stake in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 277,570 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,608 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.28% of Encompass Health worth $23,813,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Encompass Health by 1.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,166,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $839,520,000 after purchasing an additional 169,113 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,215,770 shares of the company’s stock valued at $548,156,000 after buying an additional 449,230 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 16.0% during the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,283,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,586,000 after buying an additional 314,488 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,928,449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $128,666,000 after buying an additional 120,527 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 1,791,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,530,000 after buying an additional 104,847 shares during the last quarter. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Douglas E. Coltharp sold 12,260 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.34, for a total value of $1,058,528.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 136,227 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,761,839.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Encompass Health Stock Performance

Shares of Encompass Health stock traded up $1.58 on Friday, reaching $91.48. 542,860 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 652,157. The company has a 50 day moving average of $87.08 and a 200 day moving average of $82.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37. Encompass Health Co. has a 52 week low of $57.55 and a 52 week high of $94.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.21 billion, a PE ratio of 24.72, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.89.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.30 billion. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 7.60%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.95 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Encompass Health Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be paid a $0.17 dividend. This is an increase from Encompass Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EHC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Encompass Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $83.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. SVB Leerink assumed coverage on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $100.00 price objective for the company. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective (up from $85.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $113.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Nine 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, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $100.38.

About Encompass Health

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.