KBC Group NV Boosts Stock Holdings in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNTFree Report) by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,009 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 410 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $193,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Inspire Investing LLC raised its holdings in Essent Group by 2.8% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $413,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in Essent Group by 0.4% during the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 50,569 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,841,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in 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 worth $1,000,000 after buying an additional 298 shares during the period. Provident Investment Management Inc. grew its position in 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 worth $790,000 after buying an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total transaction of $127,180.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 25,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,616,203.44. The trade was a 7.30 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ESNT has been the topic of several research reports. BTIG Research increased 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. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.00.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on ESNT

Essent Group Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of ESNT stock opened at $55.72 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $61.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.51. Essent Group Ltd. has a 52 week low of $47.56 and a 52 week high of $65.33. The company has a market cap of $5.92 billion, a PE ratio of 8.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.12.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNTGet Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.08). Essent Group had a net margin of 60.15% and a return on equity of 13.81%. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $316.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.66 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 969.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.23%.

Essent Group Profile

(Free Report)

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.

Featured Stories

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ESNT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNTFree Report).

Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT)

Receive News & Ratings for Essent Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Essent Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.