Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Cuts Stake in The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lowered its stake in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 70.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,893 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,718 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $845,000 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 ENSG. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in The Ensign Group by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,193 shares of the company’s stock valued at $184,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its stake in The Ensign Group by 4.5% during the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,967 shares of the company’s stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 15.4% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in The Ensign Group by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,865 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 16,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,484,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ENSG shares. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 target price (up from $205.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $206.00 price target (up previously from $177.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Finally, Stephens upped their price objective on The Ensign Group from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $196.40.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

ENSG stock opened at $176.44 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.22 billion, a PE ratio of 31.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.85. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $118.73 and a 12 month high of $193.99. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $180.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $167.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The company reported $1.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.05. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 16.77%. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.39 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly 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. Equities research analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, January 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.065 per share. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. This is an increase from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Ensign Group news, Director Daren Shaw sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.57, for a total value of $178,570.00. Following the sale, the director owned 24,126 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,179.82. This trade represents a 3.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Spencer Burton sold 5,899 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.30, for a total value of $1,045,892.70. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 51,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,071,554.50. This trade represents a 10.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 49,542 shares of company stock worth $8,888,109 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

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.