Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Cuts Holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System trimmed its position in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 44.7% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 15,700 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,700 shares during the quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $2,258,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in The Ensign Group during the second quarter valued at $31,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 115.2% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 284 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in The Ensign Group in the first quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in The Ensign Group during the second quarter worth approximately $49,000. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ENSG opened at $156.91 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $149.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $134.20. 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 Ensign Group, Inc. has a one year low of $94.56 and a one year high of $157.13. The firm has a market cap of $8.93 billion, a PE ratio of 41.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.96.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.01. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.32% and a net margin of 5.68%. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. The Ensign Group’s revenue was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 4.99 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.15%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Barry Port sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $420,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 53,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,520,240. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other The Ensign Group news, CEO Barry Port sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $420,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,520,240. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.71, for a total transaction of $283,420.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 29,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,127,303.75. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 16,118 shares of company stock worth $2,363,620 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ENSG shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Oppenheimer raised their price target on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Stephens raised their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.20.

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.