Brokerages Set The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) PT at $196.40

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $196.40.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on ENSG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $206.00 target price (up previously from $177.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Friday, November 14th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 price objective (up from $205.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th.

The Ensign Group Trading Up 0.6%

NASDAQ ENSG opened at $173.60 on Wednesday. The Ensign Group has a 12-month low of $118.73 and a 12-month high of $193.99. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $177.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $173.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market cap of $10.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.88.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The company reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.28 billion. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 16.77%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 19.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.39 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that The Ensign Group will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $0.065 dividend. This is a boost from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is presently 4.65%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Spencer Burton sold 2,209 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $397,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 51,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,209,700. This trade represents a 4.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.57, for a total value of $178,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,308,179.82. The trade was a 3.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 49,934 shares of company stock valued at $8,953,443 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of The Ensign Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ENSG. Baillie Gifford & Co. raised its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 4,569,254 shares of the company’s stock worth $795,964,000 after acquiring an additional 1,750,645 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of The Ensign Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $105,400,000. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in The Ensign Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $78,840,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in The Ensign Group by 195.4% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 513,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,688,000 after purchasing an additional 339,534 shares during the period. Finally, Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its position in The Ensign Group by 6.0% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,558,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $548,961,000 after purchasing an additional 199,983 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

About The Ensign Group

The Ensign Group, Inc is a diversified provider of post-acute healthcare services in the United States, operating a network of skilled nursing, assisted living, independent living, home health and hospice care centers. The company’s model emphasizes integrated care by employing multidisciplinary teams—including nursing staff, therapists and physicians—to deliver personalized rehabilitation and long-term care services for seniors and other patients recovering from injury, illness or surgery.

Through its owned and managed centers, The Ensign Group offers a broad spectrum of rehabilitation services such as physical, occupational and speech therapy.