Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Has $52.44 Million Position in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its position in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 6.0% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 364,633 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,772 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P’s holdings in The Ensign Group were worth $52,441,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in The Ensign Group by 79.7% in the 3rd quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 2,889 shares of the company’s stock valued at $416,000 after buying an additional 1,281 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 374.6% during the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 11,201 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,611,000 after purchasing an additional 8,841 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new position in The Ensign Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $18,843,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of The Ensign Group by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,110,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,740,000 after buying an additional 10,221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 164.9% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 4,442 shares of the company’s stock worth $639,000 after acquiring an additional 2,765 shares during the period. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ENSG has been the subject of several recent analyst 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 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Stephens boosted their price objective on The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Truist Financial upped their target price on The Ensign Group from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, The Ensign Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $164.33.

The Ensign Group Stock Down 0.8 %

ENSG stock opened at $145.20 on Tuesday. 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 fifty-two week low of $104.18 and a fifty-two week high of $158.45. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $148.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $138.14. The company has a market cap of $8.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.95.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last issued 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 company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 quarterly revenue was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.10 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid 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 0.17%. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Ensign Group news, CEO Barry Port sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total transaction of $310,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,325,980. This trade represents a 3.59 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

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.