Short Interest in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Decreases By 15.7%

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,990,000 shares, a decline of 15.7% from the October 15th total of 2,360,000 shares. Approximately 3.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 562,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ENSG. Oppenheimer upped their target price on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price 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. Stephens boosted their price objective on The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, The Ensign Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $162.20.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In other news, CEO Barry Port sold 5,618 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $842,700.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,057,400. The trade was a 9.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 11,118 shares of company stock valued at $1,660,200 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in The Ensign Group by 294.7% during the 2nd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 9,726 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,203,000 after acquiring an additional 7,262 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in The Ensign Group during the second quarter worth $3,500,000. AXA S.A. raised its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 9.4% in the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 54,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,757,000 after acquiring an additional 4,684 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BDF Gestion purchased a new stake in The Ensign Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,577,000. 96.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The Ensign Group Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of ENSG traded up $0.85 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $144.34. The stock had a trading volume of 38,389 shares, compared to its average volume of 378,110. 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 business’s fifty day moving average is $149.39 and its 200 day moving average is $137.13. The Ensign Group has a 52-week low of $104.18 and a 52-week high of $158.45. The firm has a market cap of $8.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.95.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.21% and a net margin of 5.84%. The Ensign Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Ensign Group will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is currently 5.81%.

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.