Bessemer Group Inc. Sells 20,459 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG

Bessemer Group Inc. decreased its holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 7.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 236,966 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,459 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $47,747,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 156.5% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Monetary Solutions Ltd bought a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 55.0% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Bayban purchased a new position in shares of The Ensign Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new position in The Ensign Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on ENSG shares. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $215.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Zacks Research cut The Ensign Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings cut The Ensign Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised The Ensign Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $213.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Ensign Group

In other news, Director John O. Agwunobi sold 392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $199.97, for a total value of $78,388.24. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 9,295 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,721.15. This represents a 4.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.28, for a total value of $114,996.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 21,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,507,706.56. This represents a 3.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 1,792 shares of company stock valued at $320,931 over the last 90 days. 4.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ENSG opened at $171.28 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.01 billion, a PE ratio of 27.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.69. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $165.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $184.01. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $134.79 and a twelve month high of $218.00.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.79 by $0.06. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.89% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The company had revenue of $1.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.52 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.480-7.620 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 6.82 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is presently 4.23%.

About The Ensign Group

The Ensign Group, Inc is a diversified provider of post-acute healthcare services in the United States, operating a network of skilled nursing, assisted living, independent living, home health and hospice care centers. The company’s model emphasizes integrated care by employing multidisciplinary teams—including nursing staff, therapists and physicians—to deliver personalized rehabilitation and long-term care services for seniors and other patients recovering from injury, illness or surgery.

Through its owned and managed centers, The Ensign Group offers a broad spectrum of rehabilitation services such as physical, occupational and speech therapy.