Bridgewater Associates LP Reduces Stock Position in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

Bridgewater Associates LP decreased its stake in Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC - Free Report) by 33.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,778 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,362 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP's holdings in Encompass Health were worth $995,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 87.8% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 293 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 38.7% in the 4th quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 455 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Encompass Health in the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 43.8% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 581 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Encompass Health by 21.6% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 704 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.25% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Encompass Health from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com cut Encompass Health from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Encompass Health from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $107.67.

Encompass Health Stock Performance

EHC traded up $1.26 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $101.98. 328,151 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 671,714. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The company's fifty day moving average price is $99.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $98.32. Encompass Health Co. has a 52-week low of $81.45 and a 52-week high of $104.55.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC - Get Free Report) last announced its 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%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.8 EPS for the current year.

Encompass Health Dividend Announcement

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 dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. Encompass Health's payout ratio is 15.25%.

Insider Activity

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 transaction 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. The trade was a 6.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

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.