The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Short Interest Down 31.4% in October

by · The Markets Daily

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG – Get Free Report) saw a large decline in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,360,000 shares, a decline of 31.4% from the September 30th total of 3,440,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 533,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.4 days. Approximately 4.3% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ENSG shares. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $133.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $152.80.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on The Ensign Group

The Ensign Group Trading Up 2.7 %

ENSG stock traded up $3.97 during trading on Friday, hitting $152.82. The company had a trading volume of 500,733 shares, compared to its average volume of 920,589. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $8.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.22, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $148.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $133.71. The Ensign Group has a 52-week low of $92.69 and a 52-week high of $155.68.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.08 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that The Ensign Group will post 4.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is presently 6.32%.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In other 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 transaction of $842,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at $8,057,400. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Barry Port sold 5,618 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $842,700.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at $8,057,400. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.71, for a total value of $283,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,125 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,127,303.75. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 14,118 shares of company stock worth $2,053,620. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Ensign Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of ENSG. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in The Ensign Group during the first quarter worth about $792,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 294.7% during the second quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 9,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,203,000 after purchasing an additional 7,262 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 14.4% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 52,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,486,000 after acquiring an additional 6,583 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Ensign Group in the second quarter valued at $3,500,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in The Ensign Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,599,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

The Ensign Group Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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