William Blair Investment Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

William Blair Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,889,004 shares of the company’s stock after selling 185,898 shares during the period. Encompass Health makes up approximately 0.9% of William Blair Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Encompass Health were worth $333,638,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of EHC. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Encompass Health during the fourth quarter worth approximately $201,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 631,816 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,155,000 after buying an additional 12,396 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Encompass Health in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,271 shares of the company’s stock worth $418,000 after acquiring an additional 593 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,764,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,703,000 after buying an additional 190,860 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Encompass Health news, CFO Douglas E. Coltharp sold 12,260 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 136,227 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,761,839.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Encompass Health Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE EHC opened at $93.25 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $89.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $84.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.39 billion, a PE ratio of 25.20, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.88. Encompass Health Co. has a fifty-two week low of $57.55 and a fifty-two week high of $94.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35.

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, topping the consensus estimate 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 17.83% and a net margin of 7.88%. Encompass Health’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.95 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. This is a boost from Encompass Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio is 18.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on EHC. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Encompass Health from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Encompass Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Encompass Health from $83.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on Encompass Health from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Encompass Health has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.38.

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.