Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $61.71.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Essent Group from $71.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $67.00 price objective on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Essent Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $60.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays cut shares of Essent Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th.

Essent Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ESNT opened at $54.68 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $56.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.68 billion, a PE ratio of 7.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.80. Essent Group has a 52 week low of $51.61 and a 52 week high of $65.34.

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

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Essent Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Essent Group’s payout ratio is presently 18.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AdvisorNet Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its position in Essent Group by 68.8% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Essent Group by 330.6% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,098 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 843 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Essent Group by 20.2% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Essent Group Company Profile

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.