Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Sells 180 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,177 shares of the company’s stock after selling 180 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $954,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 42.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,995,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $287,061,000 after purchasing an additional 593,779 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 5.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,363,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $196,181,000 after purchasing an additional 66,314 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its position in The Ensign Group by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,110,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,740,000 after purchasing an additional 10,221 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its stake in The Ensign Group by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 944,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,430,000 after purchasing an additional 7,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in The Ensign Group by 3.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 800,606 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,143,000 after buying an additional 23,381 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.48, for a total transaction of $96,936.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 30,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,258,536.96. The trade was a 2.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total value of $259,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 26,325 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,413,299.50. This represents a 7.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 43,186 shares of company stock valued at $6,345,115 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on ENSG. UBS Group began coverage on The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $175.00 price target for the company. Macquarie upped their target price on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on The Ensign Group from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $165.17.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ENSG opened at $130.79 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.98. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $132.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $141.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.56. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.11). The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.07% and a net margin of 6.99%. On average, analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current year.

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.