Harfst & Associates Inc. Sells 9,954 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Harfst & Associates Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 59.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,867 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,954 shares during the period. Harfst & Associates Inc.’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $889,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 116.7% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of The Ensign Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of The Ensign Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 39.0% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 17.9% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 585 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at The Ensign Group

In other The Ensign Group news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.48, for a total value of $107,436.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 27,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,274,724.96. This trade represents a 2.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Suzanne D. Snapper sold 8,379 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction on Monday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.21, for a total transaction of $1,241,851.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 269,692 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,971,051.32. The trade was a 3.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 17,337 shares of company stock valued at $2,611,583. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

The Ensign Group Stock Up 1.7%

ENSG opened at $166.27 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.59 billion, a PE ratio of 30.18, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $150.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $139.33. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $118.73 and a 1-year high of $166.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.22 billion. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The Ensign Group’s quarterly revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.32 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ENSG. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Stephens upped their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Macquarie dropped their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $159.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $167.67.

The Ensign Group 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.