Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Price Target Raised to $64.00

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) had its target price increased by Barclays from $63.00 to $64.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Essent Group from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Essent Group from $64.00 to $61.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Essent Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $59.88.

Essent Group Trading Up 3.1 %

Shares of Essent Group stock opened at $57.57 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $56.16 and a 200-day moving average of $54.98. The company has a market cap of $6.14 billion, a PE ratio of 8.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.11. Essent Group has a 1-year low of $45.63 and a 1-year high of $59.90.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The financial services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.14. Essent Group had a return on equity of 14.24% and a net margin of 61.40%. The firm had revenue of $298.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $298.69 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.59 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Essent Group will post 6.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essent Group

In other news, Director Douglas J. Pauls sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.12, for a total transaction of $140,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,112 shares in the company, valued at $1,521,525.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its holdings in Essent Group by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,543 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Essent Group by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 48,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,542,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in Essent Group by 2.9% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 10,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $613,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Essent Group by 49.7% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 394 shares during the period. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Institutional investors 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.