EHC vs. STE: Encompass Health vs. STERIS Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE) both fall under the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group, but EHC is classified in Health Care Providers & Services while STE is classified in Health Care Equipment & Supplies.

Company profile comparison for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE)
Profile Item	EHC	STE
Name	Encompass Health Corporation	STERIS plc
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Health Care	Health Care
GICS Industry Group	Health Care Equipment & Services	Health Care Equipment & Services
GICS Industry	Health Care Providers & Services	Health Care Equipment & Supplies
GICS Sub-Industry	Health Care Facilities	Health Care Equipment
Market Capitalization	13.50 billion USD	24.50 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	September 24, 1986	June 1, 1992
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

EHC

STE

GSPC

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	EHC	STE
Total Return (1Y)	22.16%	-1.85%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	30.96%	9.57%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	23.55%	3.26%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

EHC

STE

GSPC

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	EHC	STE
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	30.54%	26.39%
Beta (5Y)	0.82	0.81
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-27.33%	-36.18%
Avg. Volume (3M)	996.79K	694.02K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

EHC and STE are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	EHC	STE
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.59	-0.23
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.08	-0.34

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Encompass Health (EHC) at 25.11% sits in the top ROE quartile, while STERIS (STE) at 11.61% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for EHC.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

25.11%

Max: 47.61%
EHC: 25.11%
Q3: 14.36%
Median: 5.45%
Q1: -10.67%
Min: -47.01%

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

11.61%

Max: 47.61%
Q3: 14.36%
STE: 11.61%
Median: 5.45%
Q1: -10.67%
Min: -47.01%

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their ROE against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

For every dollar of sales, both Encompass Health (EHC) at 10.17% and STERIS (STE) at 13.41% retain more as net profit than most peers, landing in the top net margin quartile of their industries.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

10.17%

Max: 29.35%
EHC: 10.17%
Q3: 9.33%
Median: 2.18%
Q1: -6.29%
Min: -28.46%

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

13.41%

Max: 29.35%
STE: 13.41%
Q3: 9.33%
Median: 2.18%
Q1: -6.29%
Min: -28.46%

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their net margin against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Encompass Health (EHC) at 18.07% and STERIS (STE) at 19.18% convert sales into operating profit at a top-quartile rate, pointing to tighter cost discipline before financing and tax.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

18.07%

Max: 35.43%
EHC: 18.07%
Q3: 14.14%
Median: 6.81%
Q1: -0.28%
Min: -16.29%

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

19.18%

Max: 35.43%
STE: 19.18%
Q3: 14.14%
Median: 6.81%
Q1: -0.28%
Min: -16.29%

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their operating margin against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	EHC	STE
ROE (TTM)	25.11%	11.61%
ROA (TTM)	10.08%	7.00%
Net Margin (TTM)	10.17%	13.41%
Operating Margin (TTM)	18.07%	19.18%
Gross Margin (TTM)	44.15%	44.30%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Encompass Health (EHC) at 10.46% and STERIS (STE) at 8.73% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

STERIS (STE) at 27.90% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while Encompass Health (EHC) at 24.22% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for STE.

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	EHC	STE
Revenue Growth (YoY)	10.46%	8.73%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	10.92%	9.38%
EPS Growth (YoY)	24.22%	27.90%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	27.07%	94.97%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

STERIS (STE) at 2.05 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Encompass Health (EHC) at 1.09 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for EHC.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.09

Max: 7.59
Q3: 4.00
Median: 1.98
Q1: 1.37
EHC: 1.09
Min: 0.30

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

2.05

Max: 7.59
Q3: 4.00
STE: 2.05
Median: 1.98
Q1: 1.37
Min: 0.30

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their current ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Encompass Health (EHC) at 0.79 and STERIS (STE) at 0.28 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.79

Max: 1.88
Q3: 0.91
EHC: 0.79
Median: 0.58
Q1: 0.16
Min: 0.00

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.28

Max: 1.88
Q3: 0.91
Median: 0.58
STE: 0.28
Q1: 0.16
Min: 0.00

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	EHC	STE
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.09	2.05
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.79	0.28
Net Debt / EBITDA	1.79	0.91

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Encompass Health (EHC) at 0.55% and STERIS (STE) at 1.02% yield above their industries’ entire benchmark ranges — high enough that dividend safety, not income, becomes the first question.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

0.55%

EHC: 0.55%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

1.02%

STE: 1.02%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Encompass Health (EHC) at 12.48% and STERIS (STE) at 30.61% pay out more of their earnings than any of their industry peers — the thinnest cover in their groups, so dividend headroom deserves attention.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

12.48%

EHC: 12.48%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

30.61%

STE: 30.61%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	EHC	STE
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.55%	1.02%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	12.48%	30.61%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Encompass Health (EHC) at 22.01 and STERIS (STE) at 29.93 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

22.01

Max: 80.41
Q3: 47.62
Median: 29.93
EHC: 22.01
Q1: 21.19
Min: 4.21

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

29.93

Max: 80.41
Q3: 47.62
STE: 29.93
Median: 29.93
Q1: 21.19
Min: 4.21

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Encompass Health (EHC) at 2.13 and STERIS (STE) at 3.97 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

2.13

Max: 8.80
Q3: 4.32
EHC: 2.13
Median: 2.13
Q1: 1.10
Min: 0.03

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

3.97

Max: 8.80
Q3: 4.32
STE: 3.97
Median: 2.13
Q1: 1.10
Min: 0.03

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both Encompass Health (EHC) at 5.04 and STERIS (STE) at 3.38 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

EHC

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

5.04

Max: 11.68
Q3: 6.12
EHC: 5.04
Median: 3.00
Q1: 1.73
Min: -1.31

STE

Health Care Equipment & Services industry group

3.38

Max: 11.68
Q3: 6.12
STE: 3.38
Median: 3.00
Q1: 1.73
Min: -1.31

Encompass Health (EHC) vs. STERIS (STE): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Health Care Equipment & Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Encompass Health (EHC) and STERIS (STE)
Metric	EHC	STE
P/E Ratio (TTM)	22.01	29.93
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.13	3.97
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	5.04	3.38
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	1.97%	3.36%