Xponance Inc. Purchases 208 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Xponance Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 5.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,276 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $529,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in The Ensign Group during the first quarter worth about $792,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 294.7% in the 2nd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 9,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,203,000 after purchasing an additional 7,262 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,621,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $743,042,000 after buying an additional 310,182 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 102.9% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 64,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,274,000 after buying an additional 32,884 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its position in The Ensign Group by 14.4% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 52,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,486,000 after buying an additional 6,583 shares in the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Macquarie started coverage on The Ensign Group in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $134.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.40.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Spencer Burton sold 7,519 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.04, for a total transaction of $1,015,365.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 42,629 shares in the company, valued at $5,756,620.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Barry Port sold 3,000 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $420,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,520,240. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Spencer Burton sold 7,519 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.04, for a total transaction of $1,015,365.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 42,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,756,620.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 24,736 shares of company stock valued at $3,491,039 in the last quarter. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ENSG opened at $143.82 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market cap of $8.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.96. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $145.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $130.33. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $90.00 and a fifty-two week high of $154.93.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.02. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 17.32%. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.32%.

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.