The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 2.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 147,833 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,977 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.26% of The Ensign Group worth $25,541,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 6.0% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,558,675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $548,961,000 after acquiring an additional 199,983 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its stake in The Ensign Group by 96.2% during the 3rd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 2,818,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $486,971,000 after purchasing an additional 1,382,035 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,437,285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $221,741,000 after purchasing an additional 20,229 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group in the 2nd quarter worth $105,400,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 31.2% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 614,877 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,851,000 after buying an additional 146,302 shares in the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

ENSG stock opened at $197.80 on Friday. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a one year low of $118.73 and a one year high of $201.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $177.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $173.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.46 billion, a PE ratio of 33.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.37 billion. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 16.76%. The firm’s revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.49 earnings per share. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.410-7.610 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a $0.065 dividend. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. This is a boost from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is 4.65%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ENSG has been the subject of several research reports. Stephens raised their target price on The Ensign Group from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of The Ensign Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Truist Financial set a $215.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, UBS Group set a $230.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $201.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Ensign Group news, VP Beverly B. Wittekind sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $360,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 32,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,900,220. This trade represents a 5.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Spencer Burton sold 2,209 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $397,620.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 51,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,209,700. This trade represents a 4.14% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 50,315 shares of company stock valued at $9,013,767 over the last quarter. 3.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.