Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Increases Position in Essent Group Ltd. $ESNT

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 84.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 26,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,036 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $1,682,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC raised its position in Essent Group by 3.6% during the third quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 4,832 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $302,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its position in Essent Group by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 3,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Essent Group by 45.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. Inspire Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Essent Group by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 11,830 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $752,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the period. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 27.8% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 947 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:ESNT opened at $59.08 on Friday. Essent Group Ltd. has a 1 year low of $51.61 and a 1 year high of $67.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $60.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.77.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $312.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $312.62 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 54.72%.Essent Group’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.58 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is a positive change from Essent Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESNT has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Roth Mkm raised their target price on Essent Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Essent Group from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $68.43.

Essent Group Company Profile

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE: ESNT) is a publicly traded insurance holding company specializing in private mortgage insurance and mortgage reinsurance solutions. Through its primary subsidiary, Essent Guaranty, the company provides credit protection to mortgage lenders, helping mitigate the risk of borrower default on residential mortgage loans. Essent’s insurance policies enable lenders to offer low-down-payment programs, supporting homebuyers in achieving homeownership with reduced upfront equity requirements.

Beyond traditional mortgage insurance, Essent offers a suite of risk management and analytics services designed to help financial institutions monitor and manage mortgage portfolios.