HB Wealth Management LLC Invests $263,000 in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

HB Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $263,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its stake in The Ensign Group by 90.2% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 14,618 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,102,000 after purchasing an additional 6,931 shares during the period. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in The Ensign Group by 210.9% in the 3rd quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 6,545 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 67.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 13,924 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,038,000 after purchasing an additional 5,632 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,110,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,740,000 after purchasing an additional 10,221 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Ensign Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,500,000. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at The Ensign Group

In related news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.43, for a total transaction of $93,401.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 30,852 shares in the company, valued at $4,116,582.36. This represents a 2.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on The Ensign Group from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $175.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Stephens raised their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, The Ensign Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.83.

The Ensign Group Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ ENSG opened at $138.65 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.57, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.93. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a one year low of $110.71 and a one year high of $158.45. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $138.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $143.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.56.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.01. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 5.84% and a return on equity of 17.21%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This is a positive change from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is 6.05%.

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.