Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Has $3.88 Million Holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 177.7% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 27,008 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,282 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $3,884,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 16.2% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 508 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY raised its stake in The Ensign Group by 2.4% during the second quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 3,018 shares of the company’s stock worth $373,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 0.9% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $982,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 21.2% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 429 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pitcairn Co. grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 5,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $707,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

Shares of The Ensign Group stock opened at $154.33 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $149.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.86. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $96.29 and a fifty-two week high of $158.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market cap of $8.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.95.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.01. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.21% and a net margin of 5.84%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 4.99 earnings per share 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.16%. The Ensign Group’s payout ratio is presently 5.81%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Barry Port sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $420,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,520,240. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO Barry Port sold 3,000 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $420,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,520,240. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now owns 29,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,127,303.75. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,118 shares of company stock valued at $2,363,620. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ENSG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Truist Financial lifted their target price 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 increased their price target on The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The Ensign Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.20.

The Ensign Group Company 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.