Axa S.A. Grows Position in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Axa S.A. raised its stake in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 9.4% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 54,627 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,684 shares during the quarter. Axa S.A.’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $6,757,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ENSG. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,661,581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $828,834,000 after buying an additional 39,695 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,620,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $294,031,000 after purchasing an additional 221,838 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in The Ensign Group by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,322,526 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,577,000 after purchasing an additional 35,862 shares during the last quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 2.1% in the second quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 877,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,502,000 after purchasing an additional 18,412 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 11.7% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 571,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,693,000 after purchasing an additional 59,933 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In related news, CEO Barry Port sold 5,618 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $842,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,057,400. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other The Ensign Group news, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.71, for a total transaction of $283,420.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,127,303.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Barry Port sold 5,618 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $842,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,057,400. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,736 shares of company stock valued at $3,491,039 in the last ninety days. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

The Ensign Group Stock Down 2.3 %

The Ensign Group stock opened at $144.11 on Friday. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $90.00 and a 52 week high of $154.93. The firm has a market cap of $8.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.96. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $145.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $130.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last posted its earnings results 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 analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 (DPR) is currently 6.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer increased their price target 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. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Macquarie initiated coverage on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $134.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, The Ensign Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.40.

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.