Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. Sells 15,334 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG

Key Points

• Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in The Ensign Group by 1.1% during the first quarter, holding about 2.32% or 1,335,098 shares valued at approximately $172.76 million.
• The Ensign Group reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.59, exceeding expectations, with revenue rising 18.5% year-over-year to $1.23 billion.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.0625 per share, which resulted in a 0.2% annualized dividend yield.

Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG - Free Report) by 1.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,335,098 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,334 shares during the quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 2.32% of The Ensign Group worth $172,762,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. TCTC Holdings LLC increased 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 worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 39.0% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 467 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC increased its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 585 shares of the company's stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Beverly B. Wittekind sold 4,719 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total value of $731,445.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 38,679 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,995,245. This trade represents a 10.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Suzanne D. Snapper sold 8,379 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $39,971,051.32. This trade represents a 3.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,798 shares of company stock valued at $2,080,733. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 price objective (up previously from $185.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Macquarie lowered their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $159.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $171.00.

The Ensign Group Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ ENSG traded up $3.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $172.44. The company's stock had a trading volume of 585,074 shares, compared to its average volume of 430,654. The stock has a market cap of $9.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.41. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a one year low of $118.73 and a one year high of $173.62. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $152.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $140.40.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $1.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.32 EPS. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.340-6.460 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. The Ensign Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.54%.

The Ensign Group 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.