Ensign Group acquires facilities in Iowa, California and Wisconsin

The Ensign Group (ENSG), the parent company of the Ensign group of companies announced that it acquired Crystal Heights Care Center, a 72-bed skilled nursing facility located in Oskaloosa, Iowa. The real estate will be acquired by a subsidiary of Standard Bearer Healthcare REIT, Inc., Ensign’s captive real estate company, and the facility will be operated by an Ensign-affiliated operator, effective as of August 1. In a separate transaction on the same day, Ensign announced it acquired the operations of five skilled nursing operations and three assisted living in California. These acquisitions were effective on August 1 and are subject to new triple net lease arrangements with affiliates of CareTrust REIT (CTRE) and International Equity Partners. In addition, this acquisition also included three additional facilities, which are being operated under management agreements pending certain state regulatory reviews. In total, Ensign-affiliates will operate eleven new facilities in California, adding over 1,200 operational beds/units to Ensign’s portfolio. In another transaction on the same day, Ensign announced that it acquired the real estate, through a subsidiary of Standard Bearer, and operations of Pine Crest Health and Memory Care, a 120-bed skilled nursing facility located in Merrill, Wisconsin.