The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.06

The Ensign Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ENSG) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, March 20th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.0625 per share on Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st.

The Ensign Group has raised its dividend by an average of 4.5% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 18 years. The Ensign Group has a payout ratio of 3.6% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect The Ensign Group to earn $6.17 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.25 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 4.1%.

The Ensign Group Trading Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ:ENSG opened at $128.74 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.98. The Ensign Group has a twelve month low of $113.27 and a twelve month high of $158.45. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $132.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $140.15. 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 (NASDAQ:ENSG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.11). The Ensign Group had a return on equity of 17.07% and a net margin of 6.99%. As a group, analysts expect that The Ensign Group will post 5.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Christopher R. Christensen sold 39,086 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.52, for a total value of $5,805,052.72. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 12,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,862,292.28. This represents a 75.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Barry M. Smith sold 700 shares of The Ensign Group stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.15, for a total transaction of $90,405.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,052 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,881,215.80. This trade represents a 2.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 43,186 shares of company stock worth $6,345,115. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ENSG. Truist Financial lowered their target price on The Ensign Group from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Macquarie boosted their price target on The Ensign Group from $165.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of The Ensign Group in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $165.17.

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.