Brokerages Set Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Target Price at $64.33

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $64.33.

A number of research firms have recently commented on ESNT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Essent Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $65.00 to $70.00 in a report on Monday, August 5th. BTIG Research upped their target price on shares of Essent Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Essent Group from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Essent Group from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essent Group

In other news, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 11,188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.14, for a total value of $672,846.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 199,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,989,450.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 11,188 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.14, for a total value of $672,846.32. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 199,359 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,989,450.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.81, for a total transaction of $294,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,596,103.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 18,188 shares of company stock valued at $1,094,076. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Essent Group in the first quarter worth about $32,000. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 167.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 836 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Essent Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $47,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Essent Group by 49.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Essent Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $176,000. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essent Group Price Performance

Essent Group stock opened at $63.87 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.12. Essent Group has a 1-year low of $45.63 and a 1-year high of $65.33. The company’s 50-day moving average is $62.12 and its 200 day moving average is $58.26.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $272.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $308.33 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 14.40% and a net margin of 61.31%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.61 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Essent Group will post 7.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.94%.

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.