SPC Financial Inc. Purchases 154 Shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

SPC Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,077 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. SPC Financial Inc.’s holdings in Encompass Health were worth $4,163,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EHC. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in Encompass Health by 2,458.5% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 869,104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,990,000 after buying an additional 835,135 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new stake in Encompass Health during the fourth quarter valued at $52,094,000. abrdn plc bought a new position in Encompass Health during the fourth quarter valued at $17,846,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Encompass Health by 26.0% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 760,496 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,494,000 after purchasing an additional 156,938 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 22.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 700,021 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,412,000 after buying an additional 126,000 shares during the last quarter. 97.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Encompass Health

In other Encompass Health news, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.29, for a total value of $495,578.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 69,164 shares in the company, valued at $6,798,129.56. This trade represents a 6.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on EHC shares. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Encompass Health from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays upped their target price on Encompass Health from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $110.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Encompass Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 15th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $107.67.

Encompass Health Price Performance

EHC opened at $98.55 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.57. The firm has a market cap of $9.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.10, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.90. Encompass Health Co. has a twelve month low of $74.27 and a twelve month high of $104.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.12. Encompass Health had a net margin of 8.48% and a return on equity of 17.56%. Equities research analysts expect that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.25%.

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.