Rice Hall James & Associates LLC Sells 355 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC cut its position in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,287 shares of the company’s stock after selling 355 shares during the quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $2,828,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ENSG. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 16.2% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 508 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 74.0% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 63,823 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,179,000 after purchasing an additional 27,140 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 62.9% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 699 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. DeDora Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 2.8% during the third quarter. DeDora Capital Inc. now owns 7,090 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,020,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 115.2% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 284 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group began coverage on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Thursday, November 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $175.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price 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 equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $165.17.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In other news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.43, for a total value of $93,401.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 30,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,116,582.36. This represents a 2.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total transaction of $259,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 26,325 shares in the company, valued at $3,413,299.50. The trade was a 7.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 42,486 shares of company stock valued at $6,254,710 in the last quarter. Insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

The Ensign Group stock opened at $128.07 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $135.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $143.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.36 billion, a PE ratio of 25.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.94. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $113.27 and a 1-year high of $158.45.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last posted 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 return on equity of 17.07% and a net margin of 6.99%. As a group, analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.20%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This is a positive change from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is 4.89%.

The Ensign Group Company Profile

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.