Norges Bank Invests $134.66 Million in The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG

Norges Bank bought a new stake in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 773,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $134,660,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.33% of The Ensign Group as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ENSG. Baillie Gifford & Co. increased its position in The Ensign Group by 62.1% during the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 4,569,254 shares of the company’s stock worth $795,964,000 after purchasing an additional 1,750,645 shares during the period. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $78,840,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 195.4% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 513,328 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,688,000 after buying an additional 339,534 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 6.0% in the second 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. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 135,173.9% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 150,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,157,000 after buying an additional 150,043 shares in the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ ENSG opened at $164.29 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $185.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $187.82. 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 company has a market capitalization of $9.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.76, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.68. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $134.79 and a 1-year high of $218.00.

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

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.065 per share. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.23%.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In related news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.65, for a total transaction of $137,655.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 22,152 shares in the company, valued at $4,356,190.80. The trade was a 3.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John O. Agwunobi sold 392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.97, for a total value of $78,388.24. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 9,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,858,721.15. The trade was a 4.05% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,592 shares of company stock valued at $478,246. 4.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $222.00 price objective (up from $206.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Monday, February 9th. UBS Group set a $230.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research cut shares of The Ensign Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of The Ensign Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $216.75.

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.