Barclays Raises Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Price Target to $65.00

Key Points

• Barclays raised Essent Group’s price target from $62 to $65 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, implying about 5.2% downside from the reported share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Essent has a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $68.14, with targets from other firms ranging from $65 to $74.
• Essent reported quarterly EPS of $2.08 on $362.69 million in revenue, while insiders sold nearly 39,837 shares worth approximately $2.6 million over the past 90 days.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by research analysts at Barclays from $62.00 to $65.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "equal weight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Barclays's target price would indicate a potential downside of 5.19% from the company's current price.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on Essent Group in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. They set a "sector perform" rating and a $68.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Essent Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Essent Group in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $68.14.

Essent Group Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE ESNT opened at $68.56 on Monday. Essent Group has a fifty-two week low of $55.34 and a fifty-two week high of $70.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company has a market cap of $6.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.56, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.76. The business's 50 day moving average price is $62.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.56.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $362.69 million during the quarter. Essent Group had a return on equity of 11.91% and a net margin of 51.45%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Essent Group will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Mark Casale sold 29,329 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.35, for a total value of $1,916,650.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,184,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $142,733,745.05. This represents a 1.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 5,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.51, for a total transaction of $349,305.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 35,494 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,254,223.94. The trade was a 13.42% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 39,837 shares of company stock valued at $2,591,612 in the last ninety days. 3.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ESNT. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $346,000. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $239,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Essent Group by 160.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,080 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,280 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $224,000. 93.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Essent Group

Essent Group Ltd. NYSE: ESNT is a publicly traded insurance holding company specializing in private mortgage insurance and mortgage reinsurance solutions. Through its primary subsidiary, Essent Guaranty, the company provides credit protection to mortgage lenders, helping mitigate the risk of borrower default on residential mortgage loans. Essent's insurance policies enable lenders to offer low-down-payment programs, supporting homebuyers in achieving homeownership with reduced upfront equity requirements.

Beyond traditional mortgage insurance, Essent offers a suite of risk management and analytics services designed to help financial institutions monitor and manage mortgage portfolios.

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