Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Reduces Position in The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 9.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 101,254 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,452 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $17,638,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 156.5% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 55.0% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 125.6% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 76.9% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caitlin John LLC bought a new stake in The Ensign Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. 96.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The Ensign Group News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting The Ensign Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: No meaningful positive company-specific catalyst was reported in the latest news flow.
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple law firms announced or continued investigations into possible securities-law violations and are urging investors who lost money in ENSG to contact them about potential claims. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Another shareholder law firm said it is investigating ENSG after allegations that the company may have issued materially misleading business information. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: A report attributed to Muddy Waters raised compliance concerns, and the stock dropped sharply on the news, with allegations that Ensign may have gamed CMS quality ratings and engaged in improper billing practices. Article Title

Insider Activity at The Ensign Group

In other news, Director John O. Agwunobi sold 392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.97, for a total value of $78,388.24. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 9,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,858,721.15. This represents a 4.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.28, for a total transaction of $114,996.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 21,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,507,706.56. The trade was a 3.17% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 2,592 shares of company stock valued at $478,246 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 4.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ENSG. Zacks Research lowered shares of The Ensign Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of The Ensign Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Ensign Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $216.75.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

Shares of ENSG opened at $149.37 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $179.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $186.74. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $134.79 and a fifty-two week high of $218.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.73 billion, a PE ratio of 24.33, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.56.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.79 by $0.06. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.89% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The firm had revenue of $1.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.480-7.620 EPS. Equities analysts predict that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a $0.065 dividend. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4.23%.

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.