New York State Teachers Retirement System Cuts Stock Holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

New York State Teachers Retirement System decreased its position in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,518 shares of the company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.08% of The Ensign Group worth $4,771,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in The Ensign Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Natixis purchased a new stake in The Ensign Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC purchased a new stake in The Ensign Group in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in The Ensign Group in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 117.7% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 381 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Daren Shaw sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.67, for a total transaction of $718,020.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 31,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,754,646.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 57,982 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.05, for a total transaction of $6,844,775.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 155,703 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,380,739.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.67, for a total transaction of $718,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,754,646.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 84,782 shares of company stock worth $10,048,943 in the last three months. Company insiders own 4.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ENSG. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $112.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, The Ensign Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $119.20.

The Ensign Group Stock Down 0.8 %

ENSG opened at $119.28 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.14 and a 1-year high of $127.57. The company has a market capitalization of $6.79 billion, a PE ratio of 32.59, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $122.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $111.89.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.17. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 17.84%. The business had revenue of $980.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $975.13 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 4.97 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.20%. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is 6.56%.

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.