V Square Quantitative Management LLC Acquires 140 Shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its stake in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) by 53.0% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 404 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in Encompass Health were worth $39,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Encompass Health by 1.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,166,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $839,520,000 after purchasing an additional 169,113 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Encompass Health by 16.0% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,283,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,586,000 after buying an additional 314,488 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Encompass Health by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,819,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $156,083,000 after buying an additional 22,311 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in Encompass Health by 14.2% during the first quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,598,042 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,966,000 after acquiring an additional 198,701 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 8 Knots Management LLC grew its stake in Encompass Health by 14.0% in the first quarter. 8 Knots Management LLC now owns 1,288,815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,430,000 after acquiring an additional 158,356 shares during the period. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Douglas E. Coltharp sold 12,260 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were 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 $11,761,839.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EHC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price target on Encompass Health from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Friday, October 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Encompass Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $113.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $104.67.

Encompass Health Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of EHC stock opened at $95.75 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $93.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. Encompass Health Co. has a 1 year low of $57.55 and a 1 year high of $98.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.88, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.88.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.95 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. Encompass Health’s payout ratio is 18.38%.

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.