UMB Bank n.a. Has $30,000 Stock Holdings in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 726.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 463 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 407 shares during the quarter. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $30,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Essent Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Quarry LP lifted its position in Essent Group by 167.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 836 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Essent Group in the 2nd quarter worth $47,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Essent Group by 49.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $176,000. Institutional investors own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Essent Group 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.81, for a total transaction of $294,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,596,103.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total value of $127,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 25,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,616,203.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Essent Group Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of ESNT opened at $63.73 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $6.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.64, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.12. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.81. Essent Group Ltd. has a 1-year low of $45.63 and a 1-year high of $65.33.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.23. Essent Group had a net margin of 61.31% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The company had revenue of $272.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $308.33 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.61 EPS. Essent Group’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.76%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ESNT has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Essent Group from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. BTIG Research increased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Essent Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $65.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Essent Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.50.

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.