Daren Shaw Sells 4,463 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Stock

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Director Daren Shaw sold 4,463 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.96, for a total value of $530,918.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 32,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,836,460. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Daren Shaw also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, February 15th, Daren Shaw sold 6,000 shares of The Ensign Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.67, for a total value of $718,020.00.

The Ensign Group Trading Down 1.1 %

ENSG stock opened at $116.48 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $122.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $112.44. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.14 and a fifty-two week high of $127.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.42.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17. The firm had revenue of $980.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $975.13 million. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.84% and a net margin of 5.61%. Analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 4.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, March 31st will be given a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.21%. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is 6.56%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Baron Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in The Ensign Group by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,838 shares of the company’s stock worth $655,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 1,353 shares of the company’s stock worth $152,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 4,761 shares of the company’s stock worth $534,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 10,945 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,228,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer increased their target price on The Ensign Group from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on The Ensign Group from $112.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $119.20.

The Ensign Group Company 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.