The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday.

ENSG has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Truist Financial set a $215.00 price objective on shares of The Ensign Group and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $206.00 price objective (up previously from $177.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Stephens boosted their price objective on The Ensign Group from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, UBS Group set a $230.00 target price on The Ensign Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Ensign Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.60.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

Shares of ENSG opened at $199.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $177.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $174.63. The Ensign Group has a 12 month low of $118.73 and a 12 month high of $202.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.88.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 16.76% and a net margin of 6.80%.The company had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.410-7.610 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that The Ensign Group will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $0.065 dividend. This is a boost from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is 4.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Ensign Group

In other news, CFO Suzanne D. Snapper sold 4,573 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.11, for a total value of $896,811.03. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 272,889 shares in the company, valued at $53,516,261.79. This represents a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director John O. Agwunobi sold 146 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.31, for a total transaction of $26,033.26. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,087 shares in the company, valued at $1,620,302.97. The trade was a 1.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 63,246 shares of company stock valued at $11,536,394 in the last three months. Insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Ensign Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ENSG. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 156.5% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 125.6% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 638.7% in the second quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of The Ensign Group in the third quarter worth $35,000. Finally, MAI Capital Management grew its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 1,009.5% in the second quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 233 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The Ensign Group Company Profile

The Ensign Group, Inc is a diversified provider of post-acute healthcare services in the United States, operating a network of skilled nursing, assisted living, independent living, home health and hospice care centers. The company’s model emphasizes integrated care by employing multidisciplinary teams—including nursing staff, therapists and physicians—to deliver personalized rehabilitation and long-term care services for seniors and other patients recovering from injury, illness or surgery.

Through its owned and managed centers, The Ensign Group offers a broad spectrum of rehabilitation services such as physical, occupational and speech therapy.