Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Trims Position in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC cut its position in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 29.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 50,966 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,840 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned about 0.09% of The Ensign Group worth $4,865,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wasatch Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 4.7% in the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors Inc. now owns 6,409,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $576,893,000 after purchasing an additional 288,585 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 2.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,307,211 shares of the company’s stock worth $501,423,000 after purchasing an additional 134,749 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 4.7% during the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 5,293,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $505,771,000 after acquiring an additional 238,051 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 4.2% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,890,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $180,736,000 after acquiring an additional 76,467 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 4.4% during the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,066,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,853,000 after acquiring an additional 45,370 shares in the last quarter. 93.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at The Ensign Group

In related news, EVP Chad Keetch sold 934 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.01, for a total transaction of $92,475.34. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 86,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,533,770.91. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.84, for a total value of $195,680.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 33,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,289,870. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Chad Keetch sold 934 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.01, for a total transaction of $92,475.34. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 86,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,533,770.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 24,015 shares of company stock worth $2,375,002 in the last 90 days. 4.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

The Ensign Group stock opened at $102.00 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $95.46 and a 200-day moving average price of $94.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.76 billion, a PE ratio of 23.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $85.50 and a 12-month high of $104.04.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 25th. The company reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.01. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.97% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The company had revenue of $940.79 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $938.95 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 4.36 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 31st. Investors of record on Saturday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.058 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 28th. This represents a $0.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.23%. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is 5.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ENSG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Berenberg Bank initiated coverage on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, September 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 31st. Stephens raised their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 27th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Wednesday, September 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $112.40.

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.