FY2024 EPS Estimates for Essent Group Reduced by Analyst

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at Roth Capital reduced their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Essent Group in a report issued on Monday, November 4th. Roth Capital analyst H. Fong now forecasts that the financial services provider will earn $6.95 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $7.05. The consensus estimate for Essent Group's current full-year earnings is $7.02 per share. Roth Capital also issued estimates for Essent Group's Q4 2025 earnings at $1.76 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.73 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.77 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.79 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $7.10 EPS.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.08). Essent Group had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 60.15%. The firm had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $316.80 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.66 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 969.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday. BTIG Research raised their price target 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. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Essent Group from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Essent Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $65.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped 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 report on Monday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.00.

Essent Group Stock Up 5.2 %

Shares of Essent Group stock traded up $2.78 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $56.43. 1,174,182 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 514,665. Essent Group has a twelve month low of $47.56 and a twelve month high of $65.33. The company has a market cap of $6.00 billion, a PE ratio of 8.18, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.34.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essent Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESNT. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 10.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,680,074 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $262,973,000 after acquiring an additional 445,853 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Essent Group by 3.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,917,819 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $709,229,000 after purchasing an additional 440,385 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 68.8% during 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 buying an additional 177,700 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $8,742,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group during the second quarter worth approximately $4,748,000. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of the company'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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 25,416 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,616,203.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. Essent Group's payout ratio is currently 16.23%.

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.