JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $54.60 Million Stock Position in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 26.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 379,608 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 78,570 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $54,595,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Synovus Financial Corp raised its holdings in The Ensign Group by 90.2% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 14,618 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,102,000 after acquiring an additional 6,931 shares in the last quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 210.9% in the third quarter. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 6,545 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its position in The Ensign Group by 67.9% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 13,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,038,000 after purchasing an additional 5,632 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in The Ensign Group by 0.9% during the third quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,110,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,740,000 after buying an additional 10,221 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in The Ensign Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,500,000. 96.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Barry Port sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at $8,325,980. This represents a 3.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

Shares of ENSG stock opened at $132.50 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $143.52 and its 200-day moving average is $142.26. 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 Ensign Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $110.71 and a 52 week high of $158.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.59 billion, a PE ratio of 32.08, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.93.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.01. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 5.84% and a return on equity of 17.21%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. The Ensign Group’s quarterly revenue was up 15.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.0625 dividend. This is a boost from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.19%. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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