Sterling Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

Sterling Capital Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) by 8.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,499 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,271 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Encompass Health were worth $1,247,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of EHC. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health during the 4th quarter valued at $100,637,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Encompass Health in the fourth quarter worth about $77,944,000. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health during the fourth quarter worth about $52,094,000. abrdn plc acquired a new position in shares of Encompass Health during the fourth quarter valued at about $17,846,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Encompass Health by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,536,251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $511,273,000 after purchasing an additional 176,135 shares during the last quarter. 97.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on EHC shares. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Encompass Health from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. KeyCorp raised their target price on Encompass Health from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Encompass Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. One research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Encompass Health presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.67.

Insider Transactions at Encompass Health

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 transaction of $495,578.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 69,164 shares in the company, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Encompass Health Trading Down 0.9 %

Encompass Health stock opened at $102.30 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market cap of $10.30 billion, a PE ratio of 22.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $99.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $98.11. Encompass Health Co. has a 12 month low of $78.53 and a 12 month high of $104.55.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.12. Encompass Health had a net margin of 8.48% and a return on equity of 17.56%. Analysts anticipate that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.25%.

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.