Fred Alger Management LLC Has $1.88 Million Stock Holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Fred Alger Management LLC boosted its position in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG - Free Report) by 77.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,038 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 5,696 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC's holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $1,875,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 42.3% during the third 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 last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 2.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,322,526 shares of the company's stock valued at $163,577,000 after buying an additional 35,862 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 0.9% during the third quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,110,692 shares of the company's stock valued at $159,740,000 after buying an additional 10,221 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. acquired a new stake in The Ensign Group during the third quarter worth approximately $151,827,000. Finally, Van Berkom & Associates Inc. grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 877,211 shares of the company's stock worth $108,502,000 after acquiring an additional 18,412 shares during the period. 96.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

ENSG stock traded down $1.06 during trading on Monday, reaching $145.15. 248,414 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 375,920. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $148.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $139.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $104.18 and a twelve month high of $158.45. The company has a market capitalization of $8.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.95.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.01. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 5.84% and a return on equity of 17.21%. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.02 earnings per share for the current year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. The Ensign Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on ENSG shares. Stephens raised their target price on The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Royal Bank of Canada upped 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 lifted their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $175.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Truist Financial lifted 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $164.33.

Insider Activity at The Ensign Group

In other news, CEO Barry Port sold 2,000 shares of the business's 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at $8,325,980. The trade was a 3.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.