BankPlus Trust Department Makes New $86,000 Investment in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

BankPlus Trust Department bought a new stake in shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 936 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $86,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Quartz Partners LLC lifted its stake in Encompass Health by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Quartz Partners LLC now owns 16,354 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,510,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares in the last quarter. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC acquired a new position in shares of Encompass Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,034,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 40.6% in the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 278,593 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,728,000 after purchasing an additional 80,504 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Encompass Health during the fourth quarter worth approximately $4,096,000. Finally, Braun Stacey Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Encompass Health during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,688,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. William Blair reissued 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 set a $110.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of Encompass Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $116.00 target price (up previously from $108.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price 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. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Encompass Health currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of Encompass Health 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 69,164 shares in the company, valued at $6,798,129.56. This trade represents a 6.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Encompass Health Stock Up 1.4 %

Encompass Health stock opened at $98.86 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.90. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $96.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $96.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. Encompass Health Co. has a 1-year low of $73.68 and a 1-year 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 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. 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.