Wellington Management Group LLP Sells 68,203 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Wellington Management Group LLP trimmed its position in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG - Free Report) by 10.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 581,561 shares of the company's stock after selling 68,203 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned approximately 1.01% of The Ensign Group worth $77,266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,497,137 shares of the company's stock worth $464,630,000 after buying an additional 159,691 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,082,647 shares of the company's stock worth $276,701,000 after buying an additional 86,676 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 944,077 shares of the company's stock worth $125,430,000 after buying an additional 7,542 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 26.7% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 937,930 shares of the company's stock worth $124,613,000 after buying an additional 197,865 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in The Ensign Group during the fourth quarter worth about $90,747,000. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Beverly B. Wittekind sold 3,539 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $530,850.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 39,209 shares in the company, valued at $5,881,350. This trade represents a 8.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 1,999 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.47, for a total transaction of $290,794.53. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 24,926 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,625,985.22. This represents a 7.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ENSG. Macquarie reduced their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $159.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $163.50.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

Shares of ENSG traded up $0.79 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $148.05. The company had a trading volume of 460,979 shares, compared to its average volume of 445,937. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $134.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $135.15. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $117.41 and a 1-year high of $158.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.56. The company has a market capitalization of $8.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.03.

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

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.17%. The Ensign Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 4.73%.

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.