The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $196.40.

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $206.00 price objective (up previously from $177.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 price objective (up from $205.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th.

The Ensign Group Trading Down 3.5%

Shares of ENSG opened at $171.99 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $178.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $172.00. 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 stock has a market cap of $9.96 billion, a PE ratio of 30.77, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.86. The Ensign Group has a 1 year low of $118.73 and a 1 year high of $193.99.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released 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 return on equity of 16.77% and a net margin of 6.80%.The firm had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.39 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Ensign Group will post 5.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, January 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be given a $0.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. This is a positive change from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is 4.65%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Daren Shaw sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.57, for a total value of $178,570.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 24,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,308,179.82. This trade represents a 3.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John O. Agwunobi sold 146 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.31, for a total transaction of $26,033.26. Following the sale, the director directly owned 9,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,620,302.97. This trade represents a 1.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 50,634 shares of company stock worth $9,079,891. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 11,496 shares during the period. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. acquired a new stake in The Ensign Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $970,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in The Ensign Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $594,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in The Ensign Group by 378.6% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 22,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,861,000 after acquiring an additional 17,677 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 96.2% during the 3rd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 2,818,609 shares of the company’s stock worth $486,971,000 after acquiring an additional 1,382,035 shares in the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.