Insider Selling: The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Chairman Sells 39,086 Shares of Stock

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 39,086 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.52, for a total transaction of $5,805,052.72. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 12,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,862,292.28. The trade was a 75.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ ENSG opened at $148.86 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $138.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $143.85. 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 firm has a market cap of $8.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.04, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.94. 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 earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.11). The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.21% and a net margin of 5.84%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.17%. 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 6.05%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ENSG. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 42.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,995,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $287,061,000 after acquiring an additional 593,779 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 5.1% during the 3rd 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 increased its stake in The Ensign Group by 0.9% in 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 period. Baillie Gifford & Co. bought a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $151,827,000. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its position 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 during the period. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stephens raised their price target on The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Truist Financial lowered their price target 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. Finally, Macquarie upped their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, The Ensign Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $167.17.

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.