Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Cuts Holdings in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. cut its position in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) by 96.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,240 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 258,029 shares during the quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Essent Group were worth $519,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Essent Group by 2.9% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 10,297 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $613,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Essent Group by 2.5% in the second quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,060 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $790,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Essent Group by 49.7% in 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 period. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its position in Essent Group by 2.0% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 26,133 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,555,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC raised its position in Essent Group by 4.1% in the first quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 12,895 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $767,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essent Group Trading Up 2.7 %

Shares of NYSE ESNT traded up $1.70 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $63.72. The company's stock had a trading volume of 360,566 shares, compared to its average volume of 499,254. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $61.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.63. Essent Group Ltd. has a one year low of $45.63 and a one year high of $64.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.12.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $272.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $308.33 million. Essent Group had a net margin of 61.31% and a return on equity of 14.40%. Essent Group's revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.81, for a total transaction of $294,050.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 27,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,596,103.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Essent Group news, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 11,188 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.14, for a total value of $672,846.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 199,359 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,989,450.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.81, for a total transaction of $294,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,596,103.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on ESNT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Essent Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $65.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Monday, August 5th. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $64.33.

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.