Brokerages Set Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Target Price at $65.67

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the nine research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $66.6667.

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Essent Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Essent Group from $59.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “cautious” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th.

Essent Group Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of Essent Group stock opened at $66.80 on Tuesday. Essent Group has a 1 year low of $51.61 and a 1 year high of $67.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $61.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.84. The company has a market capitalization of $6.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.72, a P/E/G ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.90.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.75 by ($0.08). Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.40% and a net margin of 55.63%.The company had revenue of $311.83 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $316.84 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Essent Group will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Essent Group’s payout ratio is currently 18.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essent Group news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 3,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total value of $199,680.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 23,573 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,448,325.12. This trade represents a 12.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ESNT. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in Essent Group by 1,765.2% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the period. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 3rd quarter worth $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Company Profile

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.