Hancock Whitney Corp Purchases Shares of 8,093 Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC)

Hancock Whitney Corp purchased a new position in shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 8,093 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $782,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Magnetar Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 1,176.6% in the second quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 744,836 shares of the company's stock worth $63,899,000 after acquiring an additional 814,018 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in shares of Encompass Health by 2,302.7% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 603,558 shares of the company's stock worth $51,780,000 after acquiring an additional 578,438 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Encompass Health by 614.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 540,519 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,637,000 after buying an additional 464,897 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Encompass Health by 213.3% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 207,202 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,776,000 after buying an additional 141,075 shares during the period. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Encompass Health by 762.4% in the second quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 83,347 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,150,000 after buying an additional 73,683 shares during the period. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Encompass Health Stock Performance

Shares of Encompass Health stock traded down $0.93 on Wednesday, reaching $102.84. 543,892 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 641,912. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company's 50-day moving average is $97.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.11. The firm has a market cap of $10.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.88. Encompass Health Co. has a 1-year low of $63.78 and a 1-year high of $104.55.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.09. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 8.10%. The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.33 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Encompass Health Co. will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Encompass Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. Encompass Health's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Encompass Health from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Encompass Health from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Encompass Health from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $116.00 price target (up previously from $108.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $107.11.

Encompass Health Company 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.