Short Interest in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) Increases By 8.0%

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,490,000 shares, a growth of 8.0% from the August 15th total of 3,230,000 shares. Currently, 6.5% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 270,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 12.9 days.

The Ensign Group Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of The Ensign Group stock opened at $93.81 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $95.33 and a 200-day moving average of $93.86. The stock has a market cap of $5.27 billion, a PE ratio of 22.23, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.99. The Ensign Group has a 52-week low of $78.84 and a 52-week high of $104.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.50.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $921.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $909.96 million. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 7.10% and a return on equity of 18.62%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Ensign Group will post 4.36 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 31st. Investors of record on Saturday, September 30th will be paid a $0.058 dividend. This represents a $0.23 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 28th. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Ensign Group news, Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 14,583 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.01, for a total transaction of $1,385,530.83. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 939,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $89,231,301.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director Ann Scott Blouin sold 300 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.16, for a total value of $28,848.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,877 shares in the company, valued at $1,719,052.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 14,583 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.01, for a total transaction of $1,385,530.83. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 939,178 shares in the company, valued at $89,231,301.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 47,772 shares of company stock worth $4,664,506. Company insiders own 4.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital Square LLC raised its stake in The Ensign Group by 4.4% in the first quarter. Capital Square LLC now owns 2,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its stake in The Ensign Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 28,295 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,677,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in The Ensign Group by 1.2% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 11,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,126,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank raised its stake in The Ensign Group by 1.4% during the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 9,847 shares of the company’s stock worth $941,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cim Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in The Ensign Group by 3.5% during the first quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,999 shares of the company’s stock worth $382,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Tuesday, August 15th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 31st. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Wednesday, September 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.25.

About The Ensign Group

The Ensign Group, Inc provides skilled nursing, senior living, and rehabilitative services, as well as other ancillary services. It operates through Skilled Services and Standard Bearer segments. 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.