Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) by 51.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 316,224 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 107,297 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned about 0.30% of Essent Group worth $17,215,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Essent Group during the 4th quarter valued at $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 worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Essent Group by 53.3% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,125 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Essent Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Essent Group by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,363 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $129,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Essent Group Price Performance
NYSE ESNT traded down $0.49 on Friday, reaching $55.65. The company had a trading volume of 92,317 shares, compared to its average volume of 636,568. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.78 billion, a PE ratio of 8.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $55.81 and a 200-day moving average of $56.82. Essent Group Ltd. has a 1 year low of $51.61 and a 1 year high of $65.34.
Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $313.88 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.64 earnings per share. Essent Group's revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Essent Group Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This is a boost from Essent Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Essent Group's payout ratio is 18.13%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
ESNT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Essent Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays downgraded Essent Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Essent Group from $71.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $67.00 price target on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $61.71.
Check Out Our Latest Report on Essent Group
About Essent Group
(
Free Report)
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.
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