Short Interest in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Expands By 44.1%

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) was the target of a large growth in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,950,331 shares, a growth of 44.1% from the December 31st total of 1,353,395 shares. Approximately 2.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 716,099 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 716,099 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days. Approximately 2.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Roth Mkm boosted their target price on shares of Essent Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Essent Group from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted 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. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Essent Group from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essent Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.29.

Essent Group Price Performance

Shares of ESNT traded up $0.75 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $63.67. 524,894 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 705,888. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 1.68. The company has a 50 day moving average of $63.42 and a 200-day moving average of $61.91. The stock has a market cap of $6.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 0.90. Essent Group has a 1-year low of $51.61 and a 1-year high of $67.09.

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

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.05%.

Insider Activity at Essent Group

In related news, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 4,352 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.00, for a total transaction of $291,584.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 237,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,939,032. This represents a 1.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 3,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.44, for a total transaction of $199,680.00. Following the sale, the director owned 23,573 shares in the company, valued at $1,448,325.12. This represents a 12.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 3.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Essent Group during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new position in Essent Group during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Essent Group by 1,765.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Essent Group by 192.8% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 893 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 588 shares during the period. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Essent Group

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.