Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Price Target Lowered to $67.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) had its price objective trimmed by Royal Bank of Canada from $73.00 to $67.00 in a research report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on ESNT. Barclays lowered their target price on Essent Group from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Essent Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $65.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Monday, August 5th. BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of Essent Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Essent Group from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $65.00.

Essent Group Trading Down 2.1 %

ESNT stock opened at $55.24 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $62.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.34. Essent Group has a 12 month low of $47.56 and a 12 month high of $65.33.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $3.17 billion during 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 quarterly revenue was up 969.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.66 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Essent Group will post 6.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.03%. Essent Group’s payout ratio is 16.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total value of $127,180.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 25,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,616,203.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESNT. Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Essent Group by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $413,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Essent Group by 0.4% in the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 50,569 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,841,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake 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 valued at $613,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 2.0% during the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 15,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,000,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the period. Finally, Provident Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 2.5% during the second quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $790,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.