Zacks Research Has Positive Outlook for EHC FY2024 Earnings

Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research lifted their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Encompass Health in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, November 11th. Zacks Research analyst Z. Masood now expects that the company will post earnings of $4.25 per share for the year, up from their previous estimate of $4.14. The consensus estimate for Encompass Health’s current full-year earnings is $4.29 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Encompass Health’s Q1 2025 earnings at $1.25 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $1.22 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.14 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $4.75 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.41 EPS and Q3 2026 earnings at $1.24 EPS.

EHC has been the subject of several other research reports. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Encompass Health from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $116.00 target price (up from $108.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Encompass Health from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Encompass Health from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Encompass Health currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $107.11.

Encompass Health Stock Performance

Shares of Encompass Health stock opened at $103.27 on Tuesday. Encompass Health has a 52 week low of $63.01 and a 52 week high of $104.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.94, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $95.71 and a two-hundred day moving average of $89.84.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last released 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. The company had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.33 billion. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 8.10%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS.

Institutional Trading of Encompass Health

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Magnetar Financial LLC raised 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 valued at $63,899,000 after purchasing an additional 814,018 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in Encompass Health by 2,302.7% during 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 lifted its position in Encompass Health by 614.8% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 540,519 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,637,000 after acquiring an additional 464,897 shares during the last quarter. Scout Investments Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Encompass Health in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,356,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in shares of Encompass Health by 16.0% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,283,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,586,000 after purchasing an additional 314,488 shares during the last quarter. 97.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Encompass Health declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, July 24th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Encompass Health Dividend Announcement

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

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.