The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $139.50.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ENSG. Macquarie began coverage on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $134.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st.

The Ensign Group Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ENSG opened at $151.00 on Thursday. The Ensign Group has a 52-week low of $90.00 and a 52-week high of $154.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a market capitalization of $8.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a 50 day moving average of $143.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $128.90.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.02. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 17.32%. The business had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that The Ensign Group will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Ensign Group news, CEO Barry Port sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $420,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at $7,520,240. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other The Ensign Group news, COO Spencer Burton sold 7,519 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.04, for a total value of $1,015,365.76. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 42,629 shares in the company, valued at $5,756,620.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Barry Port sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $420,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at $7,520,240. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 24,736 shares of company stock worth $3,491,039 over the last ninety days. 3.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 2.4% during the second quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 3,018 shares of the company’s stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 0.9% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $982,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 21.2% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 429 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Pitcairn Co. increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 1.6% during the first quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 5,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $707,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Harfst & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 0.7% during the second quarter. Harfst & Associates Inc. now owns 12,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,512,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. 96.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Ensign Group Company 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.