Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) by 15.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 331,197 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 44,407 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned approximately 0.31% of Essent Group worth $18,030,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Essent Group by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,367,101 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $673,265,000 after purchasing an additional 432,034 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Essent Group by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,168,675 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $281,382,000 after buying an additional 200,284 shares during the period. Capital International Investors grew its position in Essent Group by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 2,370,484 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $129,049,000 after buying an additional 221,950 shares in the last quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP increased its stake in Essent Group by 45.9% during the fourth quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 2,228,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $121,343,000 after acquiring an additional 700,730 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Essent Group by 29.3% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,966,171 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $107,038,000 after acquiring an additional 445,012 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.00% of the company's stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Friday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Essent Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Friday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Essent Group in a report on Friday, May 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $61.71.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on ESNT
Insider Buying and Selling at Essent Group
In other news, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 1,777 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total value of $106,744.39. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 253,022 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,199,031.54. This represents a 0.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Douglas J. Pauls sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.80, for a total transaction of $179,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 27,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,624,467. The trade was a 9.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,001 shares of company stock valued at $299,591. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Essent Group Price Performance
ESNT opened at $58.62 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.87. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $56.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.33. Essent Group Ltd. has a one year low of $51.61 and a one year high of $65.34.
Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 9th. The financial services provider reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.03. Essent Group had a return on equity of 13.35% and a net margin of 58.69%. The firm had revenue of $317.56 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $311.18 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.70 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.
Essent Group Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.12%. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.16%.
Essent Group Profile
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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.
Further Reading
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