Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Stock Gets Price Target Reduction from Barclays

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) had its price objective trimmed by Barclays from $66.00 to $65.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Essent Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Essent Group from $72.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Bank of America cut Essent Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $78.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Roth Capital increased their target price on Essent Group from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Essent Group from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.62.

Essent Group Stock Performance

Essent Group stock opened at $64.80 on Monday. Essent Group has a 12-month low of $55.34 and a 12-month high of $71.84. The company has a market capitalization of $5.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.18. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $65.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.15.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $374.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $344.17 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 11.99% and a net margin of 49.08%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Essent Group will post 7.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Essent Group’s payout ratio is 19.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essent Group

In other Essent Group news, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 14,175 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $992,250.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 184,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,899,180. This trade represents a 7.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 5,500 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.54, for a total value of $376,970.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 29,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,055,788.76. This trade represents a 15.50% decrease in their position. 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 118,705 shares of company stock valued at $8,352,951. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $798,836,000. Renaissancere Holdings Ltd. bought a new position in Essent Group during the second quarter valued at about $107,114,521. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Essent Group by 16.8% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 914,471 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,442,000 after buying an additional 131,823 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in Essent Group during the second quarter worth about $43,068,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its holdings in Essent Group by 18.3% during the third quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 709,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,074,000 after acquiring an additional 109,494 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Essent Group

Essent Group is a Bermuda-based provider of mortgage insurance and reinsurance, operating primarily in the United States. Its services help mortgage lenders manage the credit risk associated with residential home loans. Through its U.S. mortgage insurance subsidiary, Essent Guaranty, the company provides private mortgage insurance for eligible borrowers who make smaller down payments on conventional mortgages. The coverage can help lenders reduce potential losses if a borrower defaults. Essent also provides mortgage reinsurance through its reinsurance operations.