First Trust Advisors LP Grows Holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG

First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 7.0% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 435,301 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 28,335 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $67,150,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ENSG. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its position in The Ensign Group by 33.4% during the second quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 45,962 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,090,000 after purchasing an additional 11,496 shares during the last quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. acquired a new position in shares of The Ensign Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $970,000. Inspire Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the 1st quarter valued at $2,205,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 10.4% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 267,423 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,253,000 after buying an additional 25,239 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fortis Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the 2nd quarter worth $594,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

The Ensign Group Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:ENSG opened at $177.97 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average of $180.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $165.01. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $118.73 and a 52-week high of $193.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The company reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.05. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 16.77% and a net margin of 6.80%.The business had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.39 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 19.8% compared to the same quarter last year. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.480-6.540 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th were paid a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 30th. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is 4.47%.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In other The Ensign Group news, Director Daren Shaw sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.57, for a total transaction of $178,570.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,126 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,179.82. This represents a 3.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director John O. Agwunobi sold 246 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.87, for a total transaction of $46,462.02. Following the transaction, the director owned 8,879 shares in the company, valued at $1,676,976.73. This trade represents a 2.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 39,142 shares of company stock valued at $7,054,077 over the last ninety days. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ENSG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Truist Financial lifted their target price on The Ensign Group from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $206.00 price objective (up from $177.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Friday, November 14th. Stephens lifted their price objective 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. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 target price (up previously from $205.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, The Ensign Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $196.40.

The Ensign Group 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.