38,200 Shares in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Acquired by KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 38,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,080,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its position in shares of Essent Group by 45.9% during the fourth quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 2,228,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $121,343,000 after buying an additional 700,730 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Essent Group by 132.4% during 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 valued at $27,294,000 after acquiring an additional 241,840 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Essent Group by 884.8% during the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 266,537 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $14,510,000 after acquiring an additional 239,473 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Essent Group by 31.1% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 984,414 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,591,000 after purchasing an additional 233,636 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its holdings 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. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essent Group Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE ESNT traded up $0.54 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $58.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 619,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 614,788. Essent Group Ltd. has a one year low of $52.22 and a one year high of $65.34. The company has a market cap of $6.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $56.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.84.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.67 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $315.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $313.88 million. Essent Group had a net margin of 58.69% and a return on equity of 13.35%. Essent Group's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.64 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.31 dividend. This is a positive change from Essent Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ESNT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $67.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays cut shares of Essent Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Essent Group from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $67.00 target price on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $62.57.

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.