The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) Receives “Overweight” Rating from Stephens

Stephens reiterated their overweight rating on shares of The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Stephens currently has a $155.00 price objective on the stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on ENSG. Macquarie raised their price target on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group assumed coverage on The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $175.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer increased their target price on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $165.17.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

Shares of ENSG opened at $135.91 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The Ensign Group has a twelve month low of $113.27 and a twelve month high of $158.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a 50 day moving average of $138.08 and a 200-day moving average of $143.79.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by ($0.11). The Ensign Group had a net margin of 5.84% and a return on equity of 17.21%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Ensign Group will post 5.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This is an increase from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.18%. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is 6.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Ensign Group news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.48, for a total value of $96,936.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 30,752 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,258,536.96. This trade represents a 2.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 39,086 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.52, for a total value of $5,805,052.72. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 12,539 shares in the company, valued at $1,862,292.28. This trade represents a 75.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 40,486 shares of company stock valued at $5,995,390. Insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of The Ensign Group

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Synovus Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 90.2% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 14,618 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,102,000 after acquiring an additional 6,931 shares during the period. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in The Ensign Group by 210.9% during the 3rd quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,388,000 after acquiring an additional 6,545 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its position in The Ensign Group by 67.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 13,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,038,000 after acquiring an additional 5,632 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its stake in The Ensign Group by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,110,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,740,000 after buying an additional 10,221 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 26.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 379,608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,595,000 after acquiring an additional 78,570 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

About The Ensign Group

The Ensign Group, Inc provides skilled nursing, senior living, and rehabilitative services. It operates through two segments: Skilled Services and Standard Bearer. The company's Skilled Services segment engages in the operation of skilled nursing facilities and rehabilitation therapy services for patients with chronic conditions, prolonged illness, and the elderly; and offers nursing facilities including specialty care, such as on-site dialysis, ventilator care, cardiac, and pulmonary management, as well as standard services comprising room and board, special nutritional programs, social services, recreational activities, entertainment, and other services.