Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Has Lowered Expectations for Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Stock Price

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) had its price objective decreased by investment analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $71.00 to $65.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target indicates a potential upside of 19.95% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on ESNT. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays downgraded shares of Essent Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Essent Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $60.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.71.

Essent Group Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of ESNT traded up $1.41 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $54.19. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 209,753 shares, compared to its average volume of 620,167. Essent Group has a one year low of $52.06 and a one year high of $65.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.80. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $56.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $57.60.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $315.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $313.88 million. Essent Group had a net margin of 58.69% and a return on equity of 13.35%. The business’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.64 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Essent Group will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ESNT. AdvisorNet Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Essent Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in Essent Group by 68.8% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Essent Group by 53.3% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,125 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $63,000. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.