Essent Group Ltd. $ESNT Shares Sold by Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lowered its position in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,572 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,722 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $2,707,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ESNT. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Essent Group by 9,493.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 112,727 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,507,000 after purchasing an additional 111,552 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Essent Group by 330.6% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,098 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 843 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its position in shares of Essent Group by 13.0% during the 1st quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 41,105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,373,000 after purchasing an additional 4,716 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Essent Group by 20.2% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $332,000. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essent Group Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE ESNT opened at $60.03 on Wednesday. Essent Group Ltd. has a one year low of $51.61 and a one year high of $65.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.91 billion, a PE ratio of 8.76, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $62.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $59.14.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.25. Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.66% and a net margin of 56.36%.The firm had revenue of $319.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $317.46 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.91 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essent Group news, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $260,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 243,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,796,495. This trade represents a 1.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William Spiegel sold 6,451 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.74, for a total value of $404,735.74. Following the sale, the director owned 26,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,647,050.48. The trade was a 19.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 28,190 shares of company stock valued at $1,802,316. 3.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Compass Point restated a “buy” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Essent Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday. DOWLING & PARTN lowered Essent Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Essent Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essent Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $65.67.

About Essent Group

Essent Group Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides private mortgage insurance and reinsurance for mortgages secured by residential properties located in the United States. Its mortgage insurance products include primary, pool, and master policy. The company also provides information technology maintenance and development services; customer support-related services; underwriting consulting; and contract underwriting services, as well as risk management products and title insurance and settlement services.