Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Grows Stock Position in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 10.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,680,074 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 445,853 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 4.39% of Essent Group worth $262,973,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group in the fourth quarter worth about $60,678,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Essent Group by 3.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,917,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $709,229,000 after acquiring an additional 440,385 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Essent Group by 94.1% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 739,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,019,000 after purchasing an additional 358,621 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Essent Group by 31.2% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 650,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,295,000 after purchasing an additional 154,591 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the first quarter worth about $8,742,000. 93.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essent Group Stock Down 1.3 %

NYSE ESNT opened at $63.49 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $61.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $57.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.77 billion, a PE ratio of 9.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.12. Essent Group Ltd. has a 52 week low of $45.63 and a 52 week high of $64.76.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The financial services provider reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $272.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $308.33 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 14.40% and a net margin of 61.31%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.61 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ESNT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Essent Group from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Essent Group from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. BTIG Research increased their target price 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. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Essent Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $65.00 to $70.00 in a report on Monday, August 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essent Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.33.

Insider Activity at Essent Group

In other news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.81, for a total transaction of $294,050.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 27,140 shares in the company, valued at $1,596,103.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.81, for a total value of $294,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,596,103.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 11,188 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.14, for a total transaction of $672,846.32. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 199,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,989,450.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.