F M Investments LLC Sells 71,802 Shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

F M Investments LLC reduced its position in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 62.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,596 shares of the company’s stock after selling 71,802 shares during the quarter. F M Investments LLC owned 0.08% of The Ensign Group worth $5,792,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC raised its position 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 valued at $276,701,000 after purchasing an additional 86,676 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in The Ensign Group by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,363,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $196,181,000 after buying an additional 66,314 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in The Ensign Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 944,077 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,430,000 after purchasing an additional 7,542 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $90,747,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 557,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,098,000 after buying an additional 42,184 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Macquarie increased their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, The Ensign Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $165.17.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

Shares of The Ensign Group stock opened at $129.29 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a fifty day moving average of $130.16 and a 200-day moving average of $138.54. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $113.27 and a 52-week high of $158.45.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by ($0.11). The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.07% and a net margin of 6.99%. Equities research analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.19%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.48, for a total transaction of $96,936.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,752 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,258,536.96. This represents a 2.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 39,086 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.52, for a total value of $5,805,052.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 12,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,862,292.28. This trade represents a 75.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 42,486 shares of company stock valued at $6,251,714 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

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.