Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lessened its position in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) by 5.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 264,605 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 15,289 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned approximately 0.25% of Essent Group worth $17,011,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ESNT. Inspire Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 2.8% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,418 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $413,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Essent Group by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 50,569 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,841,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in Essent Group by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 10,297 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $613,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Essent Group by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,060 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $790,000 after buying an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Essent Group by 49.7% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,187 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several brokerages have recently commented on ESNT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Essent Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $65.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Monday, August 5th. BTIG Research raised their price target on Essent Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Barclays increased their price target on Essent Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Essent Group from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Essent Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $66.50.
Read Our Latest Report on ESNT
Insider Activity at Essent Group
In other Essent Group news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total value of $127,180.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 25,416 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,616,203.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total transaction of $127,180.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 25,416 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,616,203.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now owns 27,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,596,103.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Essent Group Stock Down 1.7 %
Shares of Essent Group stock traded down $1.07 on Friday, reaching $60.49. The company's stock had a trading volume of 437,761 shares, compared to its average volume of 493,879. Essent Group Ltd. has a 52-week low of $45.63 and a 52-week high of $65.33. The company has a market capitalization of $6.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.15, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $63.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.05.
Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Essent Group had a return on equity of 14.40% and a net margin of 61.31%. The business had revenue of $272.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $308.33 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.61 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Essent Group Dividend Announcement
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.85%. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.94%.
About Essent Group
(
Free Report)
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.
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