Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Receives $64.71 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $64.71.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ESNT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Essent Group from $67.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Essent Group from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Essent Group from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th.

Essent Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ESNT opened at $55.01 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $55.83 and its 200 day moving average is $59.26. Essent Group has a 1 year low of $50.65 and a 1 year high of $65.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.11.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). The company had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.80 million. Essent Group had a net margin of 60.15% and a return on equity of 13.81%. The business’s revenue was up 969.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.66 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Essent Group will post 6.94 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.04%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.23%.

Institutional Trading of Essent Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Essent Group by 10.5% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,680,074 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $262,973,000 after buying an additional 445,853 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Essent Group by 132.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 424,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,294,000 after purchasing an additional 241,840 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Essent Group by 68.8% in 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 purchasing an additional 177,700 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Essent Group by 154.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 208,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,431,000 after purchasing an additional 126,899 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 45.5% during the 3rd quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 345,675 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,223,000 after purchasing an additional 108,061 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

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.