The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) Price Target Raised to $165.00

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) had its target price increased by Oppenheimer from $155.00 to $165.00 in a report released on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Oppenheimer currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Macquarie initiated coverage on The Ensign Group in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They set an outperform rating and a $134.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $139.50.

The Ensign Group Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of ENSG opened at $151.00 on Monday. The Ensign Group has a twelve month low of $90.00 and a twelve month high of $154.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.74, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.96. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $143.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $128.90.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.32% and a net margin of 5.68%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. The Ensign Group’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that The Ensign Group will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.32%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.71, for a total transaction of $283,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 29,125 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,127,303.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.71, for a total transaction of $283,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 29,125 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,127,303.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Barry Port sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $420,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,520,240. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 24,736 shares of company stock valued at $3,491,039 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Ensign Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in The Ensign Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $65,050,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in The Ensign Group by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,621,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $743,042,000 after acquiring an additional 310,182 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,620,360 shares of the company’s stock worth $294,031,000 after acquiring an additional 221,838 shares during the period. F M Investments LLC acquired a new stake in The Ensign Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $14,370,000. Finally, Axiom Investors LLC DE grew its position in The Ensign Group by 142.8% in the fourth quarter. Axiom Investors LLC DE now owns 187,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,022,000 after acquiring an additional 110,177 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 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.