The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG Shares Sold by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Key Points

• Vontobel Holding Ltd. reduced its stake in The Ensign Group by 36.8%, selling 1,927 shares, leaving it with 3,312 shares valued at approximately $511,000.
• Analysts have set new price targets for The Ensign Group, with UBS raising its target from $195.00 to $205.00 and a consensus target price of $176.83 suggesting a "Moderate Buy" rating.
• The Ensign Group reported a net margin of 6.99% and a quarterly revenue increase of 18.5% year-over-year, with quarterly EPS of $1.59 exceeding analyst estimates.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lessened its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG - Free Report) by 36.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,312 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,927 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $511,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 114.0% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 199 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 116.7% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 208 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the first quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stephens upped their target price 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. Finally, Truist Financial set a $190.00 price target on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Tuesday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $176.83.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ENSG opened at $178.00 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $169.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $151.37. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $118.73 and a 1-year high of $179.27. 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 firm has a market cap of $10.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.93.

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 for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.32 EPS. The Ensign Group's quarterly revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.340-6.460 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.06, for a total transaction of $120,442.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 27,052 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,654,567.12. The trade was a 2.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company 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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