Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Raises Position in Encompass Health Corporation $EHC

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Encompass Health Corporation (NYSE:EHC) by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,616,178 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,349 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Encompass Health were worth $205,279,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in Encompass Health by 57.8% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,194,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $151,544,000 after acquiring an additional 437,464 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. purchased a new stake in Encompass Health during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,272,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in Encompass Health by 12.8% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 894,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $113,621,000 after purchasing an additional 101,274 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Encompass Health during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,719,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC raised its holdings in Encompass Health by 170.9% in the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 29,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,800,000 after buying an additional 18,874 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on EHC. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Encompass Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, January 18th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Encompass Health from $150.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Encompass Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $143.29.

Encompass Health Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EHC opened at $106.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market cap of $10.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $103.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.65. Encompass Health Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $92.53 and a fifty-two week high of $127.99.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.17. Encompass Health had a net margin of 9.54% and a return on equity of 18.20%. The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.17 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Encompass Health has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.810-6.100 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Encompass Health Corporation will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Encompass Health news, CEO Mark J. Tarr sold 150,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.64, for a total transaction of $16,746,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 377,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,096,094.80. The trade was a 28.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Encompass Health Profile

Encompass Health Corporation is a leading provider of post‐acute healthcare services in the United States, operating a comprehensive network of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and home health and hospice agencies. Its inpatient rehabilitation hospitals offer intensive therapy programs for patients recovering from conditions such as stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury, cardiac and pulmonary disorders, and orthopedic procedures. Through its home health segment, Encompass Health delivers skilled nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy to patients in the comfort of their homes, while its hospice services provide end‐of‐life care focused on symptom management and emotional support for patients and families.

Founded in 1984 as HealthSouth Corporation and rebranded as Encompass Health in 2018, the company has grown organically and through acquisitions to serve patients across more than 30 states.