John G Ullman & Associates Inc. Buys Shares of 24,050 Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

John G Ullman & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 24,050 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,221,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Williamson Legacy Group LLC boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Williamson Legacy Group LLC now owns 7,639 shares of the company’s stock valued at $705,000 after acquiring an additional 470 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,380 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 24.4% in the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 25,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,374,000 after acquiring an additional 5,039 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 54,213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,007,000 after acquiring an additional 3,923 shares during the period. Finally, Amalgamated Bank boosted its stake in Encompass Health by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 48,126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,444,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares during the period. 97.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Encompass Health Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EHC opened at $100.11 on Friday. Encompass Health Co. has a 12 month low of $73.68 and a 12 month high of $104.55. The stock has a market cap of $10.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.45, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.90. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $96.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $96.36. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.12. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 8.48%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders 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 dividend yield of 0.68%. Encompass Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling 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 stock was 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 of the company’s stock, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on EHC shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Encompass Health from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Encompass Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Encompass Health from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Encompass Health has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $107.67.

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.