De Lisle Partners LLP Grows Holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

De Lisle Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 120.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 22,010 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,010 shares during the period. De Lisle Partners LLP’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $3,168,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Baillie Gifford & Co. purchased a new position in shares of The Ensign Group during the third quarter worth $151,827,000. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 42.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,995,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $287,061,000 after acquiring an additional 593,779 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in The Ensign Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $18,843,000. F M Investments LLC acquired a new position in The Ensign Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $14,370,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in The Ensign Group during the third quarter worth about $9,565,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

Shares of ENSG opened at $145.98 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.35, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.95. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $148.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $138.53. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $104.18 and a twelve month high of $158.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.02 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. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.16%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is 5.81%.

Insider Activity at The Ensign Group

In related news, CEO Barry Port sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total value of $310,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,325,980. The trade was a 3.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ENSG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of The Ensign Group from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group began coverage on The Ensign Group in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $175.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Ensign Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $164.33.

The Ensign Group 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.