Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $21.67 Million Stake in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 48.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 150,649 shares of the company’s stock after selling 144,143 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.26% of The Ensign Group worth $21,666,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ENSG. F M Investments LLC acquired a new stake in The Ensign Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $14,370,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 11.7% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 571,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,693,000 after purchasing an additional 59,933 shares in the last quarter. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Ensign Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $5,167,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in The Ensign Group by 15.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 306,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,862,000 after purchasing an additional 41,429 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in The Ensign Group by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,661,581 shares of the company’s stock worth $828,834,000 after buying an additional 39,695 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.12% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Ensign Group

In other news, CEO Barry Port sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total transaction of $507,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 53,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,788,820. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 11,118 shares of company stock valued at $1,660,200. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ENSG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on The Ensign Group from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of The Ensign Group from $167.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of 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 upped their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $163.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. One equities research 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 presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.20.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

Shares of ENSG stock opened at $148.79 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $104.09 and a 12-month high of $158.45. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $149.62 and a 200-day moving average of $136.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.95.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.21% and a net margin of 5.84%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.10 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

The Ensign Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.16%. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.81%.

About The Ensign Group

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.