AE Wealth Management LLC Makes New Investment in The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG

AE Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $617,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in The Ensign Group by 638.7% in the second quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 229 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Ensign Group during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. MAI Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 1,009.5% in the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 233 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 1,128.6% in the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the period. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of The Ensign Group by 872.4% in the second quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 282 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the period. 96.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ENSG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of The Ensign Group from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $206.00 price target (up previously from $177.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Friday, November 14th. Stephens raised their price objective on The Ensign Group from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 target price (up previously from $205.00) on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $196.40.

Key Headlines Impacting The Ensign Group

Here are the key news stories impacting The Ensign Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat — Ensign reported adjusted Q4 EPS of $1.82, topping consensus and up materially vs. a year ago; adjusted results and margins showed healthy improvement, supporting valuation. Ensign Group (ENSG) Q4 Earnings Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Aggressive FY‑2026 guidance — management raised annual EPS guidance to $7.41–$7.61 (well above consensus ~$6.93) and issued revenue guidance ~ $5.77–$5.84B, signaling confidence in organic growth and acquisitions. That guidance is a key bullish driver. The Ensign Group Reports Fiscal Year and Fourth Quarter 2025 Results; Issues 2026 Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Record operating performance — FY‑2025 revenue and adjusted EPS set records, Medicare revenue, skilled days and occupancy all improved; liquidity remains strong (~$504M cash + ~$592M available), which supports further M&A and dividend continuity. The Ensign Group Reports Record Fiscal Year and Fourth Quarter 2025 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Ongoing acquisition activity — multiple small-to-mid acquisitions announced (Arizona, Texas, Wisconsin) that expand footprint and revenue base; these are accretive over time but require onboarding execution. The Ensign Group Acquires Real Estate and Operations in Texas
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains constructive — recent buy/outperform calls and mid‑$200s price targets indicate upside for investors who buy the growth story; but targets are contingent on guidance execution. Assessing Ensign Group (ENSG) Valuation After Recent Moves
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue slight miss vs. near-term estimates — Q4 service revenue ~$1.36B was marginally below some analyst expectations (~$1.37B), which capped upside despite the EPS beat. Q4 Press Release (PDF)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — director Barry M. Smith disclosed a sale of 700 shares; Quiver/insider-trade data also shows multiple recent insider sales across executives, which can concern some investors about near-term sentiment. Director Insider Sale Filing

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In other news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.59, for a total transaction of $121,513.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 23,652 shares in the company, valued at $4,105,750.68. This represents a 2.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Daren Shaw sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.57, for a total transaction of $178,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 24,126 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,179.82. This represents a 3.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 50,388 shares of company stock valued at $9,027,059. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

The Ensign Group Price Performance

The Ensign Group stock opened at $173.18 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.88. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $118.73 and a 12-month high of $193.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $176.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $173.10.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. The Ensign Group had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 16.77%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.49 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.410-7.610 EPS. Equities analysts predict that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current year.

The Ensign Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a $0.065 dividend. This is an increase from The Ensign Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.65%.

About The Ensign Group

The Ensign Group, Inc is a diversified provider of post-acute healthcare services in the United States, operating a network of skilled nursing, assisted living, independent living, home health and hospice care centers. The company’s model emphasizes integrated care by employing multidisciplinary teams—including nursing staff, therapists and physicians—to deliver personalized rehabilitation and long-term care services for seniors and other patients recovering from injury, illness or surgery.

Through its owned and managed centers, The Ensign Group offers a broad spectrum of rehabilitation services such as physical, occupational and speech therapy.