ProShare Advisors LLC Acquires 13,314 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 22.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 71,608 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,314 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $9,514,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ENSG. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,497,137 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,630,000 after buying an additional 159,691 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,082,647 shares of the company’s stock worth $276,701,000 after acquiring an additional 86,676 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 944,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,430,000 after purchasing an additional 7,542 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 937,930 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,613,000 after purchasing an additional 197,865 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in The Ensign Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $90,747,000. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on ENSG shares. Macquarie cut their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $159.00 to $156.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $163.50.

The Ensign Group Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ ENSG opened at $149.75 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $130.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $135.47. 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 Ensign Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $116.23 and a 1 year high of $158.45. The firm has a market cap of $8.61 billion, a PE ratio of 29.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.03.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.99% and a return on equity of 17.07%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.30 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 4.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.15, for a total value of $90,405.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 30,052 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,881,215.80. This represents a 2.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

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.