Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) Short Interest Update

Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 2,110,000 shares, an increase of 19.2% from the February 13th total of 1,770,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 675,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days. Currently, 2.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Encompass Health Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:EHC traded down $0.22 on Tuesday, hitting $97.53. 560,635 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 632,830. Encompass Health has a 12 month low of $76.11 and a 12 month high of $104.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.92. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $97.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $97.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.12. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 8.48%. Analysts anticipate that Encompass Health will post 4.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.25%.

Insider Transactions at Encompass Health

In other Encompass Health news, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of Encompass Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.29, for a total transaction of $495,578.18. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 69,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,798,129.56. This trade represents a 6.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Encompass Health

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Encompass Health by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,404,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $960,817,000 after purchasing an additional 138,196 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Encompass Health by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,536,251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $511,273,000 after purchasing an additional 176,135 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in Encompass Health by 0.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,025,769 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,410,000 after purchasing an additional 21,329 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in Encompass Health by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,076,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $191,799,000 after purchasing an additional 117,617 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its stake in Encompass Health by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,973,846 shares of the company’s stock valued at $182,285,000 after purchasing an additional 15,831 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.