The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Shares Sold by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. reduced its holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 31.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,464 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,523 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $786,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ENSG. CWM LLC grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 16.2% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 508 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY increased its position in The Ensign Group by 2.4% during the second quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 3,018 shares of the company’s stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in The Ensign Group by 0.9% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $982,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 21.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 429 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pitcairn Co. grew its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 5,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $707,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ENSG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens lifted their target price on The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted 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, October 28th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target 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, October 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.20.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

The Ensign Group stock opened at $145.68 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.35 billion, a PE ratio of 35.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.95. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a one year low of $104.18 and a one year high of $158.45. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $149.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $136.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.56.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 5.84% and a return on equity of 17.21%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is 5.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Ensign Group news, CEO Barry Port sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total transaction of $310,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at $8,325,980. This represents a 3.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,118 shares of company stock worth $1,660,200. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About The Ensign Group

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.