Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Has $2.05 Million Holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,235 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 321 shares during the quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $2,046,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,211,171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $135,905,000 after purchasing an additional 36,587 shares during the last quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 13.8% in the third quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 1,000,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,020,000 after purchasing an additional 121,432 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 8.4% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 788,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,275,000 after purchasing an additional 61,127 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 3.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 750,388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,734,000 after purchasing an additional 23,215 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 732,166 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,156,000 after purchasing an additional 7,110 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ENSG has been the topic of several research reports. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on The Ensign Group from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on The Ensign Group from $112.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Beverly B. Wittekind sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.65, for a total value of $1,216,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 37,912 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,611,994.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Beverly B. Wittekind sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.65, for a total value of $1,216,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 37,912 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,611,994.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.26, for a total value of $236,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 30,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,577,365. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 16,813 shares of company stock worth $2,024,703. Insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

NASDAQ ENSG traded up $1.66 on Friday, hitting $120.16. 157,823 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 260,751. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $119.66 and a 200-day moving average of $116.48. 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 Ensign Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.14 and a 52 week high of $127.57. The stock has a market cap of $6.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.95.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.19. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.60% and a net margin of 5.67%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. Analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 4.96 earnings per share for the current year.

The Ensign Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is presently 6.32%.

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.