Cetera Investment Advisers Acquires 4,145 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG - Free Report) by 17.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,284 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 4,145 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $3,660,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 48.0% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 28,465 shares of the company's stock worth $3,782,000 after buying an additional 9,230 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 67,180 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,925,000 after acquiring an additional 4,082 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 336,831 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,751,000 after acquiring an additional 1,939 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its position in The Ensign Group by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,082,647 shares of the company's stock worth $276,701,000 after purchasing an additional 86,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 32,883 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,369,000 after purchasing an additional 711 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company's stock.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ ENSG traded up $0.86 on Friday, reaching $160.12. 196,658 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 432,160. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a one year low of $118.73 and a one year high of $162.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.24 billion, a PE ratio of 29.06, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.02. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $149.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $138.65.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.05. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.32 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were given a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. The Ensign Group's payout ratio is presently 4.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Ensign Group news, Director Daren Shaw sold 1,999 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.47, for a total value of $290,794.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,926 shares in the company, valued at $3,625,985.22. This represents a 7.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.48, for a total transaction of $107,436.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 27,852 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,274,724.96. This trade represents a 2.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,336 shares of company stock valued at $2,902,377 over the last three months. Insiders own 3.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ENSG shares. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Macquarie decreased their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $159.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $167.67.

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.