The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) Upgraded at Zacks Research

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) was upgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on ENSG. UBS Group set a $230.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised The Ensign Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $222.00 target price (up from $206.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Stephens lifted their price target on The Ensign Group from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Ensign Group has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $204.60.

The Ensign Group Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ ENSG opened at $214.17 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $12.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.67, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.88. 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 Ensign Group has a 12 month low of $118.73 and a 12 month high of $216.92. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $187.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $179.90.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.54, for a total transaction of $120,078.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 23,552 shares in the company, valued at $4,040,110.08. This trade represents a 2.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John O. Agwunobi sold 146 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.31, for a total value of $26,033.26. Following the completion of the sale, the director 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 27,473 shares of company stock valued at $5,147,297. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Ensign Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 4,569,254 shares of the company’s stock valued at $795,964,000 after buying an additional 1,750,645 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,558,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $548,961,000 after acquiring an additional 199,983 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,016,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $348,322,000 after acquiring an additional 136,260 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,498,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $261,107,000 after purchasing an additional 49,117 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,332,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $232,124,000 after purchasing an additional 118,110 shares in the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.