Mark Casale Sells 21,607 Shares of Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Stock

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) CEO Mark Casale sold 21,607 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.07, for a total transaction of $1,514,002.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,039,691 shares in the company, valued at $142,921,148.37. This represents a 1.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Mark Casale also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, August 18th, Mark Casale sold 20,246 shares of Essent Group stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.18, for a total transaction of $1,420,864.28.
• On Tuesday, July 7th, Mark Casale sold 29,329 shares of Essent Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.35, for a total transaction of $1,916,650.15.
• On Monday, July 6th, Mark Casale sold 1,245 shares of Essent Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.08, for a total transaction of $81,024.60.
• On Tuesday, June 30th, Mark Casale sold 3,763 shares of Essent Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.01, for a total transaction of $244,632.63.

Essent Group Price Performance

NYSE ESNT opened at $68.10 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.76. Essent Group Ltd. has a 1 year low of $55.34 and a 1 year high of $70.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $65.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $362.69 million during the quarter. Essent Group had a return on equity of 11.91% and a net margin of 51.45%. On average, research analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.53%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in Essent Group by 796.8% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 32,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,084,000 after buying an additional 28,527 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $326,000. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $333,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $228,000. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $966,000. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Essent Group from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Essent Group from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Roth Capital boosted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essent Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essent Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $71.86.

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.