Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Downgraded by Barclays to "Equal Weight"

Barclays downgraded shares of Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. Barclays currently has $58.00 price target on the financial services provider's stock, down from their prior price target of $69.00.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on ESNT. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Essent Group from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Essent Group from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Essent Group from $67.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $63.14.

Essent Group Stock Performance

NYSE:ESNT traded down $1.43 during trading on Monday, reaching $53.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 703,145 shares, compared to its average volume of 552,348. Essent Group has a 12 month low of $50.65 and a 12 month high of $65.33. The firm has a market cap of $5.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $55.83 and a 200-day moving average of $59.31.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $316.80 million. Essent Group had a net margin of 60.15% and a return on equity of 13.81%. The firm's revenue was up 969.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Essent Group will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Essent Group's payout ratio is 16.23%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 10.5% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,680,074 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $262,973,000 after buying an additional 445,853 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Essent Group by 132.4% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 424,542 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,294,000 after purchasing an additional 241,840 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Essent Group by 68.8% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 436,009 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $24,499,000 after purchasing an additional 177,700 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Essent Group by 154.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 208,927 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,431,000 after purchasing an additional 126,899 shares during the period. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 45.5% in the third quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 345,675 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $22,223,000 after purchasing an additional 108,061 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.00% of the company's stock.

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.