ENSG
The Ensign Group, Inc.
ENSG has the edge over NVO overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and lower modeled downside.
NVO
Novo Nordisk A/S
NVO offers stronger valuation, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
ENSG Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
ENSG's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
NVO Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy |
NVO's revenue, profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its cash flow is stable.
ENSG PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 22x | $187 | — |
| Cheap | 23x | $153 | -18% |
| Fair | 25x | $171 | -8.2% |
| Current | 28x | $187 | — |
| Expensive | 32x | $216 | +16% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
ENSG's PE is in its expensive range at 28x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 22x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
NVO PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current | 10x | $40.65 | — |
| Cheap | 14x | $53.56 | +32% |
| Fair | 27x | $103 | +154% |
| Expensive | 39x | $152 | +273% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
NVO has the edge over ENSG in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
ENSG Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Limited | |
| High |
ENSG has the edge over NVO on the outlook, with more favorable earnings and profitability expectations.
NVO Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Stable | |
| Growth | |
| Weakening | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect NVO's revenue to grow, but its profitability to weaken. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
ENSG Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $8.60 | +28% |
| Q3 2026 | $6.72 | +20% |
| Q2 2026 | $6.38 | +16% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.14 | +16% |
| Q4 2025 | $5.84 | +14% |
| Q3 2025 | $5.60 | +36% |
| Q2 2025 | $5.52 | +42% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.30 | +40% |
| Q4 2024 | $5.12 | +40% |
ENSG has the edge over NVO on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
NVO Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $3.89 | +4.9% |
| Q1 2026 | $4.07 | +17% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.42 | +1.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.47 | +10% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.71 | +24% |
| Q1 2025 | $3.49 | +18% |
| Q4 2024 | $3.36 | +21% |
| Q3 2024 | $3.15 | +27% |
NVO's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $3.89 over the past year, up 4.9% from the year before, and higher year over year every quarter since late 2020.
ENSG Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.5B | +14% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.4B | +17% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.4B | +18% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.4B | +20% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.3B | +20% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.2B | +18% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.2B | +16% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.1B | +15% |
ENSG has the edge over NVO on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 9.3% | +1.9 points |
| Q2 2026 | 8.5% | 0 points |
| Q1 2026 | 9% | +0.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 9.1% | +0.2 points |
| Q3 2025 | 7.4% | -0.8 points |
| Q2 2025 | 8.5% | +0.2 points |
| Q1 2025 | 8.6% | +0.5 points |
| Q4 2024 | 8.9% | +6.6 points |
ENSG's operating margin was 9.3% last quarter, up 1.9 points from the same quarter a year ago.
NVO Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $11.7B | +2.1% |
| Q1 2026 | $14.4B | +24% |
| Q4 2025 | $11.8B | -7.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $11.1B | +5.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $11.4B | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $11.6B | +19% |
| Q4 2024 | $12.7B | +30% |
| Q3 2024 | $10.6B | +21% |
NVO's revenue is growing: $11.7B last quarter, up 2.1% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 34% | -9 points |
| Q1 2026 | 62% | +12 points |
| Q4 2025 | 40% | -2.8 points |
| Q3 2025 | 32% | -16 points |
| Q2 2025 | 44% | +5.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 50% | +1 points |
| Q4 2024 | 43% | +2.2 points |
| Q3 2024 | 47% | +1.6 points |
NVO has the edge over ENSG on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
ENSG Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $240.2M | +57% |
| Q2 2026 | $172M | +10% |
| Q1 2026 | $100.2M | +39% |
| Q4 2025 | $183.3M | +82% |
| Q3 2025 | $153M | +14% |
| Q2 2025 | $155.7M | +102% |
| Q1 2025 | $72.2M | +105% |
| Q4 2024 | $100.5M | +18% |
ENSG has the edge over NVO on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
NVO Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $6.3B | +73% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.8B | +20% |
| Q4 2025 | -$5.4B | -$4.7B |
| Q3 2025 | $4.6B | -2.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.6B | -34% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.5B | +89% |
| Q4 2024 | -$632.6M | +$390.5M |
| Q3 2024 | $4.7B | +3.3% |
NVO still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2026 peak: $7.3B over the past year.
ENSG Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.3% | -180K shares |
| 1 year | +0.6% | +347K shares |
| 3 years | +3.4% | +2M shares |
| 5 years | +4.1% | +2.3M shares |
| Available history | +5.9% | +3.3M shares |
ENSG has 59M diluted shares, up 0.6% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $7.4M |
| Q2 2026 | $40M |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | $9.2M |
| Q1 2025 | $10.8M |
| Q4 2023 | — |
ENSG spent $47M buying back its own shares over the past year.
NVO Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.3% | -12.9M shares |
| 1 year | -0.2% | -11M shares |
| 3 years | -1.5% | -66.8M shares |
| 5 years | -3.8% | -177M shares |
| Available history | -6.5% | -311M shares |
NVO has the edge over ENSG on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $520M |
| Q1 2026 | $356.7M |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | $206.3M |
| Q4 2024 | $1.1B |
| Q3 2024 | $357.4M |
NVO spent $877M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 48% from the year before.
ENSG Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.7x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -0.7x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -0.6x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.7x | Net Cash |
ENSG has the edge over NVO on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
NVO Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.7x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.4x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2024 | -0.0x | Very low |
NVO's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
ENSG Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 59.6 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 70.3 | Neutral |
ENSG's weekly RSI is 60 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 70 (neutral).
NVO Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 27.0 | Neutral |
NVO's weekly RSI is 43 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 27 (neutral).
ENSG PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | ENSG | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 28x | 26x | 7.4% above |
| PE % | 66 | 29 | 37 pts above |
ENSG is trading at 28x earnings, in line with the Healthcare sector's median of 26x.
NVO PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | NVO | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 10x | 26x | 60% below |
| PE % | 6 | 29 | 23 pts below |
NVO has the edge over ENSG on valuation relative to its sector.
ENSG Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $177.5 | 5.1% above |
| 20 week MA | $175.8 | 6.1% above |
| 50 week MA | $181.0 | 3.1% above |
| 100 week MA | $165.7 | 13% above |
| 200 week MA | $139.9 | 33% above |
ENSG has the edge over NVO on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
NVO Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $39.2 | 3.7% above |
| 20 week MA | $43.9 | 7.4% below |
| 50 week MA | $45.3 | 10% below |
| 100 week MA | $56.3 | 28% below |
| 200 week MA | $80.7 | 50% below |
NVO has bounced recently, but its long-term trend is still down: it's above its 8-week average, but 50% below its 200-week average.
ENSG Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $44.7 | $72.8 | +63% |
| 2021 | $72.8 | $81.8 | +12% |
| 2022 | $81.8 | $95.0 | +16% |
| 2023 | $95.0 | $112.2 | +18% |
| 2024 | $112.2 | $134.0 | +19% |
| 2025 | $134.0 | $176.4 | +32% |
| 2026 YTD | $176.4 | $186.5 | +5.7% |
ENSG has the edge over NVO on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
NVO Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $29.1 | $34.7 | +19% |
| 2021 | $34.7 | $54.2 | +56% |
| 2022 | $54.2 | $67.0 | +24% |
| 2023 | $67.0 | $103.5 | +54% |
| 2024 | $103.5 | $87.4 | -16% |
| 2025 | $87.4 | $52.4 | -40% |
| 2026 YTD | $52.4 | $40.7 | -22% |
NVO has finished higher in four of the last six years, two of them by more than 50%. It's down 22% so far in 2026.