Rice Hall James & Associates LLC Sells 4,428 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC decreased its stake in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 17.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,642 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,428 shares during the quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $3,113,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of The Ensign Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,522,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in The Ensign Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,531,000. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of The Ensign Group in the third quarter worth approximately $228,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 115.2% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 284 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DeDora Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. DeDora Capital Inc. now owns 7,090 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,020,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In related news, CEO Barry Port sold 2,000 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total value of $310,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,325,980. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 16,118 shares of company stock worth $2,363,620 in the last three months. Insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens upped their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Truist Financial increased their target price on The Ensign Group from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.20.

The Ensign Group Stock Down 0.4 %

ENSG opened at $154.33 on Friday. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $96.29 and a 52 week high of $158.22. 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 firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $149.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $134.49. The company has a market capitalization of $8.84 billion, a PE ratio of 37.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.96.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.21% and a net margin of 5.84%. The firm’s revenue was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.10 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.16%. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is currently 5.81%.

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.