First Trust Advisors LP Sells 318,695 Shares of Essent Group Ltd. $ESNT

First Trust Advisors LP decreased its position in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 66.9% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 157,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 318,695 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $9,229,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Essent Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 97.1% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 676 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in Essent Group by 111.8% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 879 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Essent Group

In related news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 5,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.51, for a total transaction of $349,305.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 35,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,254,223.94. This represents a 13.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Mark Casale sold 29,329 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.35, for a total value of $1,916,650.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,184,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $142,733,745.05. The trade was a 1.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 39,837 shares of company stock worth $2,591,612. 3.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ESNT shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Essent Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Essent Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Barclays upped their price target on Essent Group from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Essent Group in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.71.

Essent Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ESNT opened at $66.00 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.08 billion, a PE ratio of 9.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Essent Group Ltd. has a twelve month low of $55.34 and a twelve month high of $68.62. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $62.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.35.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.14. Essent Group had a net margin of 53.64% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business had revenue of $336.07 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $297.56 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.69 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.24 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.94%.

Essent Group Profile

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE: ESNT) is a publicly traded insurance holding company specializing in private mortgage insurance and mortgage reinsurance solutions. Through its primary subsidiary, Essent Guaranty, the company provides credit protection to mortgage lenders, helping mitigate the risk of borrower default on residential mortgage loans. Essent’s insurance policies enable lenders to offer low-down-payment programs, supporting homebuyers in achieving homeownership with reduced upfront equity requirements.

Beyond traditional mortgage insurance, Essent offers a suite of risk management and analytics services designed to help financial institutions monitor and manage mortgage portfolios.