Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Price Target Raised to $59.00

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) had its price target boosted by equities researchers at Barclays from $58.00 to $59.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Barclays's target price would suggest a potential downside of 1.88% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded Essent Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $65.00 to $67.00 in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Compass Point set a $69.00 price objective on Essent Group and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essent Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $63.71.

Essent Group Price Performance

Essent Group stock traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $60.13. 183,352 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 662,706. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $58.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $57.09. The company has a market capitalization of $6.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.80, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.81. Essent Group has a 12-month low of $51.61 and a 12-month high of $65.34.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 9th. The financial services provider reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $317.56 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $311.18 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.98% and a net margin of 57.29%. Essent Group's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.70 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Essent Group will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Douglas J. Pauls sold 3,000 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.80, for a total transaction of $179,400.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 27,165 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,624,467. The trade was a 9.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 1,999 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $119,940.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 251,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,061,380. The trade was a 0.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,740 shares of company stock worth $581,386 over the last quarter. 3.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Essent Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Essent Group by 623.2% in the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,777 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $169,000 after buying an additional 2,393 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Essent Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $895,000. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 271,788 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $15,688,000 after purchasing an additional 5,251 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 28,783 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,661,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 760.5% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 367,460 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $21,210,000 after purchasing an additional 324,757 shares during the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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