Strs Ohio Invests $867,000 in The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG

Key Points

• Strs Ohio purchased 6,700 shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. valued at approximately $867,000, highlighting increased institutional interest in the company.
• The Ensign Group reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations of $1.54, alongside a revenue of $1.23 billion.
• Analysts are optimistic about The Ensign Group, with five analysts rating it as a Buy and an average price target of $172.67.

Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 6,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $867,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ENSG. Rise Advisors LLC grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 114.0% in the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 199 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 116.7% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 208 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc acquired a new stake in The Ensign Group during the first quarter worth about $38,000. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ENSG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on The Ensign Group from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Ensign Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $172.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.06, for a total transaction of $120,442.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 27,052 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,654,567.12. This represents a 2.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Suzanne D. Snapper sold 8,379 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.21, for a total transaction of $1,241,851.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 269,692 shares of the company's stock, valued at $39,971,051.32. This represents a 3.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,779 shares of company stock valued at $1,469,730 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company's stock.

The Ensign Group Trading Up 1.5%

NASDAQ:ENSG traded up $2.53 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $166.82. 238,933 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 356,288. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $118.73 and a twelve month high of $174.98. The business has a 50-day moving average of $160.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $146.45. The company has a market capitalization of $9.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.28, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.05. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 16.92% and a net margin of 6.99%.The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.32 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.340-6.460 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be paid a $0.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The Ensign Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.54%.

About The Ensign Group

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.