Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Shares Acquired by Los Angeles Capital Management LLC

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 2.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $1,000,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Essent Group by 32.6% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 60,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,905,000 after purchasing an additional 14,941 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Essent Group in the third quarter worth about $709,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in Essent Group by 40.0% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 65,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,022,000 after buying an additional 18,597 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Essent Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in Essent Group by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 12,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $795,000 after buying an additional 835 shares during the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is currently 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 dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total transaction 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 7.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE ESNT opened at $55.50 on Friday. Essent Group Ltd. has a 12-month low of $47.56 and a 12-month high of $65.33. The company has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a PE ratio of 8.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $61.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.39.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.08). Essent Group had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 60.15%. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $316.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.66 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 969.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 2.02%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on ESNT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Essent Group from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Essent Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $65.00 to $70.00 in a report on Monday, August 5th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their target price on Essent Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essent Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.00.

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.