The Ensign Group Reports Second Quarter 2009 Earnings of $0.39 per Share; Reaffirms 2009 EP...( ...),Health

MISSION VIEJO, Calif., Aug. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Ensign Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: ENSG), the parent company of the Ensign(TM) group of skilled nursing, rehabilitative care services and assisted living companies, today reported record results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2009.

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Quarter-over-Quarter Highlights Include:

• Total revenue was a record $132.2 million, up 14.6% compared to $115.3 million for the second quarter of 2008;
• Same-store skilled mix by revenue increased to 49.6%;
• The company's average daily Medicare rate increased by 9.4% to $542 per patient day, an increase of $46 per patient day, as the company's overall patient base continued shifting to a higher acuity mix;
• Consolidated EBITDAR climbed to $21.5 million, an increase of $3.8 million, with consolidated EBITDAR margins improving by 88 basis points to 16.2%, and same-store EBITDAR margins improving 123 basis points to 16.6%; and
• Consolidated net income climbed 25.5% to a record $8.2 million, compared to $6.5 million the year before, with net margins increasing to 6.2% from 5.7%.
  

Operating Results

Ensign's President and Chief Executive Officer Christopher Christensen congratulated Ensign's facility leaders and their teams. "Despite muted occupancy and skilled mix growth in isolated areas, we are pleased to report that our same-store skilled mix nonetheless rose by 11 basis points, and earnings were up over 25%," he said. He attributed the record performance to the responsiveness of Ensign's local leader
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