West Coast Financial LLC Raises Stake in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

West Coast Financial LLC raised its position in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,146 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 748 shares during the period. West Coast Financial LLC’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $4,537,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ENSG. FMR LLC increased 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 valued at $287,061,000 after buying an additional 593,779 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,363,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $196,181,000 after acquiring an additional 66,314 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,322,526 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,577,000 after acquiring an additional 35,862 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in The Ensign Group by 0.9% during the third quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,110,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,740,000 after purchasing an additional 10,221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. acquired a new position in The Ensign Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $151,827,000. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ENSG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $175.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. 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 report on Monday, January 6th. Stephens upped their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $161.83.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

ENSG opened at $135.70 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.78 billion, a PE ratio of 32.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.93. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $110.71 and a 1 year high of $158.45. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $140.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.88.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.01. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.21% and a net margin of 5.84%. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.0625 dividend. This is a positive change from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is currently 6.05%.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In related news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.43, for a total transaction of $93,401.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,116,582.36. The trade was a 2.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Barry Port sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,325,980. This represents a 3.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

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.