The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $165.17.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ENSG. Truist Financial dropped their target price 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. Macquarie increased their price objective on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. 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. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Thursday, February 6th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Ensign Group news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.48, for a total transaction of $96,936.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 39,086 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 12,539 shares in the company, valued at $1,862,292.28. This represents a 75.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of The Ensign Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ENSG. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new position in The Ensign Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $690,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in The Ensign Group by 38.8% in the fourth quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 75.7% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 5,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $709,000 after purchasing an additional 2,300 shares in the last quarter. Vestcor Inc grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 100.2% in the 4th quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 16,893 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,244,000 after buying an additional 8,455 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank increased its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 112,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,920,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

The Ensign Group Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of The Ensign Group stock opened at $129.23 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $137.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $143.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.43 billion, a PE ratio of 25.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.94. The Ensign Group has a 52-week low of $113.27 and a 52-week high of $158.45. 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 (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 net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 17.07%. On average, analysts expect that The Ensign Group will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.19%. This is a positive change from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.89%.

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.