Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Receives $62.57 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the seven analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $62.57.

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 price target on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. 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. Barclays downgraded shares of Essent Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Essent Group from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Essent Group from $67.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essent Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essent Group in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Essent Group in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its position in Essent Group by 68.8% in the 4th 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 last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the fourth quarter worth about $63,000. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essent Group Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ESNT opened at $56.16 on Wednesday. Essent Group has a fifty-two week low of $51.99 and a fifty-two week high of $65.33. The stock has a market cap of $5.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.11. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $56.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.93.

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

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Essent Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Essent Group’s payout ratio is 16.37%.

Essent Group Company Profile

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.