The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) Receives "Overweight" Rating from Stephens

Stephens reiterated their overweight rating on shares of The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG - Free Report) in a research report report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Stephens currently has a $155.00 price target on the stock.

ENSG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on The Ensign Group in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $175.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised 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. Macquarie upped their price target 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, February 4th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Ensign Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $165.17.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

Shares of The Ensign Group stock traded down $1.77 during trading on Thursday, hitting $129.23. 572,583 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 462,144. The stock has a market cap of $7.43 billion, a PE ratio of 25.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.94. The stock's fifty day moving average is $137.77 and its 200 day moving average is $143.86. The Ensign Group has a 12 month low of $113.27 and a 12 month high of $158.45. 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 Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.11). The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 17.07%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Ensign Group will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 39,086 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.52, for a total transaction of $5,805,052.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 12,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,862,292.28. This represents a 75.71 % 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. Also, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.48, for a total value of $96,936.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,752 shares in the company, valued at $4,258,536.96. This represents a 2.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 40,486 shares of company stock worth $5,995,390 in the last ninety days. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of The Ensign Group

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Synovus Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 90.2% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 14,618 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,102,000 after buying an additional 6,931 shares in the last quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 210.9% during the 3rd quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,648 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,388,000 after acquiring an additional 6,545 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 67.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 13,924 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,038,000 after purchasing an additional 5,632 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,110,692 shares of the company's stock valued at $159,740,000 after purchasing an additional 10,221 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 26.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 379,608 shares of the company's stock worth $54,595,000 after purchasing an additional 78,570 shares in the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.