The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $204.53 and last traded at $203.93, with a volume of 371224 shares. The stock had previously closed at $199.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ENSG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $222.00 target price (up previously from $206.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Monday. UBS Group set a $230.00 price objective on shares of The Ensign Group and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Truist Financial set a $215.00 price objective on shares of The Ensign Group and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Stephens upped their target price on The Ensign Group from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Ensign Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.60.

The Ensign Group Trading Up 2.3%

The firm has a market capitalization of $11.81 billion, a PE ratio of 34.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.88. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $178.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $175.01. 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 Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 16.76%. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.49 EPS. The Ensign Group’s revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.410-7.610 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, January 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were paid a dividend of $0.065 per share. This is a positive change from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.45%.

Insider Activity at The Ensign Group

In other news, VP Beverly B. Wittekind sold 8,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.48, for a total transaction of $1,474,032.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 32,779 shares in the company, valued at $5,752,058.92. This represents a 20.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Spencer Burton sold 5,899 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.30, for a total transaction of $1,045,892.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 51,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,071,554.50. The trade was a 10.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 34,931 shares of company stock worth $6,419,591 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 33.4% during the 2nd quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 45,962 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,090,000 after purchasing an additional 11,496 shares during the last quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. acquired a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the second quarter worth about $970,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 378.6% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 22,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,861,000 after purchasing an additional 17,677 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its position in The Ensign Group by 96.2% in the third quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 2,818,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $486,971,000 after buying an additional 1,382,035 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp acquired a new position in The Ensign Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,157,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

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.