Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on EHC. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays boosted their price target on Encompass Health from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $107.67.

Encompass Health Price Performance

NYSE:EHC opened at $98.14 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $9.88 billion, a PE ratio of 22.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $99.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $97.67. Encompass Health has a 52 week low of $78.53 and a 52 week high of $104.55.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share (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%. As a group, analysts forecast that Encompass Health will post 4.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Encompass Health news, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.29, for a total value of $495,578.18. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 69,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,798,129.56. This represents a 6.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Encompass Health

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Encompass Health by 390.7% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,737 shares of the company’s stock worth $176,000 after purchasing an additional 1,383 shares in the last quarter. 111 Capital acquired a new stake in shares of Encompass Health during the 4th quarter valued at about $502,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 46.0% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,204 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,774,000 after purchasing an additional 6,053 shares in the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its position in Encompass Health by 43.5% during the fourth quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 1,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $148,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ABLE Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Encompass Health by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. ABLE Financial Group LLC now owns 12,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,157,000 after acquiring an additional 2,100 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

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.