Analysts Set Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Target Price at $65.00

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $65.00.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on ESNT shares. Barclays reduced their target price on Essent Group from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Essent Group from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Essent Group from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th.

Essent Group Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of ESNT stock traded down $0.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $56.14. The stock had a trading volume of 533,882 shares, compared to its average volume of 532,899. Essent Group has a 12-month low of $48.08 and a 12-month high of $65.33. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $59.52. The company has a market cap of $5.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.09.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.80 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 60.15%. The business's revenue was up 969.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.66 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Essent Group will post 6.95 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essent Group

In other Essent Group news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total transaction of $127,180.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 25,416 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,616,203.44. This trade represents a 7.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ESNT. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Essent Group by 49.7% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,187 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Essent Group by 10.9% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,968 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 685 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Essent Group by 147.5% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 33,597 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,888,000 after buying an additional 20,023 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the second quarter worth $725,000. Finally, Ellsworth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Essent Group by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 9,572 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $538,000 after acquiring an additional 590 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.