Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) Plans $0.17 Quarterly Dividend

Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 20th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of 0.17 per share on Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st.

Encompass Health has decreased its dividend by an average of 17.0% annually over the last three years. Encompass Health has a dividend payout ratio of 12.8% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Encompass Health to earn $5.28 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.68 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 12.9%.

Encompass Health Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of Encompass Health stock opened at $97.42 on Friday. Encompass Health has a 52-week low of $73.68 and a 52-week high of $104.55. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $95.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $95.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.12. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.56% and a net margin of 8.48%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Encompass Health will post 4.8 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Encompass Health

In related news, CAO Andrew L. Price sold 5,042 shares of Encompass Health stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.29, for a total value of $495,578.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 69,164 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,798,129.56. This trade represents a 6.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on EHC. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $116.00 price objective (up from $108.00) on shares of Encompass Health in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. KeyCorp upped their price target 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 upgraded Encompass Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. Barclays upped their price target on Encompass Health from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Encompass Health in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Encompass Health has a consensus 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.