Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Trims Stock Position in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. cut its position in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) by 8.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,468,177 shares of the company’s stock after selling 129,865 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned about 1.46% of Encompass Health worth $125,955,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Encompass Health during the 4th quarter valued at about $69,178,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 187.2% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 17,077 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,139,000 after purchasing an additional 11,130 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Encompass Health by 18.6% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 57,265 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,821,000 after purchasing an additional 8,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Encompass Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $491,000. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on EHC. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Encompass Health in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price target on Encompass Health from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Encompass Health from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded Encompass Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.38.

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 value of $1,058,528.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 136,227 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,761,839.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Encompass Health Price Performance

EHC opened at $92.65 on Friday. 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 Co. has a 1 year low of $57.55 and a 1 year high of $94.59. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $90.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.25. The firm has a market cap of $9.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.04, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.88.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.30 billion. Encompass Health had a net margin of 7.88% and a return on equity of 17.83%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Encompass Health Increases Dividend

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

Encompass Health announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.