William Blair Has Positive Estimate for EHC FY2024 Earnings

Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) – Equities research analysts at William Blair upped their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Encompass Health in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, October 29th. William Blair analyst J. Haase now anticipates that the company will earn $4.24 per share for the year, up from their previous estimate of $4.10. The consensus estimate for Encompass Health’s current full-year earnings is $4.18 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Encompass Health’s Q4 2025 earnings at $1.09 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $4.87 EPS.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on EHC. UBS Group lifted their price target on Encompass Health from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Leerink Partnrs raised Encompass Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $105.67.

Encompass Health Stock Up 7.4 %

EHC stock opened at $99.96 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $93.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $88.52. Encompass Health has a 52-week low of $59.57 and a 52-week high of $102.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.88.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.09. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.83% and a net margin of 7.88%. The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.86 EPS. Encompass Health’s revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Encompass Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.43%.

Encompass Health declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 24th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Encompass Health

In other news, CFO Douglas E. Coltharp sold 12,260 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.34, for a total transaction of $1,058,528.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 136,227 shares in the company, valued at $11,761,839.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Encompass Health

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EHC. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,166,147 shares of the company’s stock worth $839,520,000 after acquiring an additional 169,113 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 16.0% during the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,283,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $188,586,000 after buying an additional 314,488 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Encompass Health by 1.2% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,819,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,083,000 after acquiring an additional 22,311 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 14.2% in the 1st quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,598,042 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,966,000 after buying an additional 198,701 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 8 Knots Management LLC raised its stake in Encompass Health by 14.0% during the first quarter. 8 Knots Management LLC now owns 1,288,815 shares of the company’s stock worth $106,430,000 after acquiring an additional 158,356 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

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.