Bank of America Corp DE Sells 25,838 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Bank of America Corp DE lessened its stake in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG - Free Report) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 423,447 shares of the company's stock after selling 25,838 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 0.74% of The Ensign Group worth $56,259,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ENSG. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 260.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 107,288 shares of the company's stock worth $15,430,000 after buying an additional 77,514 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new stake in The Ensign Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $200,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in The Ensign Group by 20.8% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 10,031 shares of the company's stock worth $1,333,000 after purchasing an additional 1,730 shares in the last quarter. West Coast Financial LLC boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 34,146 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,537,000 after purchasing an additional 748 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Ensign Group during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Macquarie lowered their price target on The Ensign Group from $159.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $163.50.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

Shares of ENSG opened at $143.56 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $8.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.03. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $129.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $135.63. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $116.23 and a 12 month high of $158.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.02. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.07% and a net margin of 6.99%. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. The company's revenue was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $0.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. The Ensign Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 4.73%.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In other The Ensign Group news, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.66, for a total transaction of $259,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 26,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,413,299.50. The trade was a 7.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.15, for a total transaction of $90,405.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 30,052 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,881,215.80. This represents a 2.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.90% of the company's stock.

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.

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