Barry Smith Sells 700 Shares of The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) Stock

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Director Barry Smith sold 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.28, for a total value of $114,996.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 21,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,507,706.56. This trade represents a 3.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

The Ensign Group Stock Up 3.7%

The Ensign Group stock opened at $170.30 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.95 billion, a PE ratio of 27.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.68. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $134.79 and a 12 month high of $218.00. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $184.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $187.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.56.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.40 billion. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 6.89%.The business’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.52 earnings per share. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.480-7.620 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 6.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.065 per share. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is presently 4.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on ENSG shares. Zacks Research cut The Ensign Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. UBS Group set a $230.00 price target on The Ensign Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $222.00 price target (up from $206.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen cut The Ensign Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, The Ensign Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $216.75.

Institutional Trading of The Ensign Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 62.1% in the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 4,569,254 shares of the company’s stock valued at $795,964,000 after buying an additional 1,750,645 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,558,675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $548,961,000 after buying an additional 199,983 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,016,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $348,322,000 after buying an additional 136,260 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,498,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $261,107,000 after buying an additional 49,117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,332,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $232,124,000 after buying an additional 118,110 shares in the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About The Ensign Group

The Ensign Group, Inc is a diversified provider of post-acute healthcare services in the United States, operating a network of skilled nursing, assisted living, independent living, home health and hospice care centers. The company’s model emphasizes integrated care by employing multidisciplinary teams—including nursing staff, therapists and physicians—to deliver personalized rehabilitation and long-term care services for seniors and other patients recovering from injury, illness or surgery.

Through its owned and managed centers, The Ensign Group offers a broad spectrum of rehabilitation services such as physical, occupational and speech therapy.