StockNews.com Upgrades Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) to Buy

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on EHC. KeyCorp increased their price target on Encompass Health from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Encompass Health from $118.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $117.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective (up previously from $116.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Encompass Health has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $120.86.

Encompass Health Stock Performance

Shares of EHC opened at $116.45 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $103.44 and a 200 day moving average of $99.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.11, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.91. Encompass Health has a one year low of $82.74 and a one year high of $118.27. 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 quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.18. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 8.48%. The business had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.12 earnings per share. Encompass Health’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Encompass Health will post 4.8 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Encompass Health

In other news, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.29, for a total value of $495,578.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 69,164 shares in the company, valued at $6,798,129.56. The trade was a 6.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Elissa Joy Charbonneau sold 4,279 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.61, for a total transaction of $498,974.19. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,394,422.38. This represents a 26.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,321 shares of company stock valued at $2,142,452 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Encompass Health

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board raised its position in shares of Encompass Health by 19.8% in the first quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 21,914 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,219,000 after buying an additional 3,618 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 685,577 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,435,000 after purchasing an additional 40,813 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 0.8% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 213,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,639,000 after buying an additional 1,634 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Encompass Health by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,877,000 after buying an additional 875 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SPC Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Encompass Health by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 45,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,605,000 after acquiring an additional 388 shares during the period. 97.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.