Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $31.98 Million Stake in The Ensign Group, Inc. $ENSG

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) by 2.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 158,713 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,510 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.27% of The Ensign Group worth $31,981,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its holdings in shares of The Ensign Group by 62.1% during the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 4,569,254 shares of the company’s stock worth $795,964,000 after purchasing an additional 1,750,645 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of The Ensign Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $134,660,000. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Ensign Group in the third quarter valued at about $78,840,000. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its position in The Ensign Group by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,558,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $548,961,000 after buying an additional 199,983 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. grew its holdings in The Ensign Group by 264.9% during the 1st quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 259,917 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,373,000 after acquiring an additional 188,679 shares during the last quarter. 96.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of The Ensign Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered The Ensign Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on The Ensign Group from $215.00 to $202.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of The Ensign Group in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded The Ensign Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $213.50.

The Ensign Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ENSG opened at $171.28 on Monday. The Ensign Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $134.79 and a fifty-two week high of $218.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $165.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $184.07.

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ:ENSG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by $0.06. The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 6.89%.The company had revenue of $1.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.52 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. The Ensign Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.480-7.620 EPS. On average, analysts predict that The Ensign Group, Inc. will post 6.82 EPS for the current year.

The Ensign Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.2%. The Ensign Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4.23%.

Insider Transactions at The Ensign Group

In other The Ensign Group news, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.28, for a total transaction of $114,996.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 21,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,507,706.56. This trade represents a 3.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 4.00% of the company’s stock.

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.