Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Raises Holdings in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) by 167.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,517 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 8,454 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Essent Group were worth $736,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its holdings in Essent Group by 68.8% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 584 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in Essent Group by 53.3% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,125 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Essent Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $63,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Essent Group by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,363 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $129,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESNT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays lowered shares of Essent Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $69.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Essent Group from $71.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $67.00 target price on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Essent Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $61.71.

Essent Group Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE ESNT opened at $55.55 on Friday. Essent Group Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $51.61 and a fifty-two week high of $65.34. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $55.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $56.72. The firm has a market cap of $5.77 billion, a PE ratio of 8.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.80.

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

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. This is an increase from Essent Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.13%.

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.

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