The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) Given “Hold” Rating at Truist Financial

Truist Financial reiterated their hold rating on shares of The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. Truist Financial currently has a $110.00 price target on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on ENSG. StockNews.com started coverage on The Ensign Group in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a hold rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on The Ensign Group from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, July 31st. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an overweight rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Tuesday, August 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $110.80.

The Ensign Group Stock Down 3.6 %

The Ensign Group stock opened at $95.57 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $95.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.50. The company has a market cap of $5.37 billion, a PE ratio of 22.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.99. The Ensign Group has a 1-year low of $78.84 and a 1-year high of $104.04.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.03. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 18.62% and a net margin of 7.10%. The company had revenue of $921.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $909.96 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Ensign Group will post 4.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.058 per share. This represents a $0.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 29th. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.45%.

Insider Activity at The Ensign Group

In related news, EVP Chad Keetch sold 11,155 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.60, for a total value of $1,122,193.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 86,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,670,814.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other The Ensign Group news, Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 14,583 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.01, for a total value of $1,385,530.83. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 939,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $89,231,301.78. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Chad Keetch sold 11,155 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.60, for a total value of $1,122,193.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 86,191 shares in the company, valued at $8,670,814.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 57,955 shares of company stock worth $5,632,909 in the last quarter. 4.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of The Ensign Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ENSG. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in The Ensign Group by 3.2% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 9,552,038 shares of the company’s stock valued at $911,838,000 after purchasing an additional 299,626 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors Inc. now owns 6,409,214 shares of the company’s stock valued at $576,893,000 after purchasing an additional 288,585 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,307,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $501,423,000 after acquiring an additional 134,749 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 5,293,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $505,771,000 after acquiring an additional 238,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its position in The Ensign Group by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,595,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $245,575,000 after buying an additional 179,365 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.02% of the company’s stock.

The Ensign Group Company Profile

The Ensign Group, Inc provides skilled nursing, senior living, and rehabilitative services, as well as other ancillary services. It operates through Skilled Services and Standard Bearer segments. 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.