Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Position Increased by Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its position in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) by 18.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 56,191 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 8,597 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. owned 0.05% of Essent Group worth $3,059,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ESNT. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Essent Group by 726.8% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 463 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the third quarter worth about $32,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $63,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 53.9% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 477 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Essent Group by 51.9% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,803 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 616 shares in the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essent Group Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of ESNT traded down $0.17 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $59.03. The company had a trading volume of 604,764 shares, compared to its average volume of 772,315. The stock has a market cap of $6.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.55, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.11. The company's 50 day moving average price is $55.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.27. Essent Group Ltd. has a 52 week low of $50.65 and a 52 week high of $65.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on ESNT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays lowered shares of Essent Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Essent Group from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Essent Group from $67.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essent Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $62.71.

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.