The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) Cut to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Truist Financial set a $215.00 target price on The Ensign Group and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group set a $230.00 price objective on shares of The Ensign Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of The Ensign Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $222.00 price objective (up from $206.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Ensign Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.60.

The Ensign Group Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of The Ensign Group stock opened at $204.79 on Monday. The Ensign Group has a 12-month low of $118.73 and a 12-month high of $218.00. The stock has a market cap of $11.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business’s 50 day moving average is $203.17 and its 200-day moving average is $187.05.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 16.76% and a net margin of 6.80%.The company had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.49 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.410-7.610 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that The Ensign Group will post 5.59 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, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.065 dividend. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 4.45%.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In other The Ensign Group news, VP Beverly B. Wittekind sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.23, for a total value of $105,115.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 32,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,891,129.17. This represents a 1.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John O. Agwunobi sold 246 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.82, for a total value of $44,235.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,233 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,660,278.06. This represents a 2.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 17,073 shares of company stock worth $3,349,532. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ENSG. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 161,946 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,956,000 after purchasing an additional 14,590 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 150.3% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 383 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 638.7% during the 2nd quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 65.9% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 536 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the 2nd quarter worth $15,048,000. 96.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Ensign Group Company Profile

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.