Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Rating Lowered to Market Perform at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $67.00 price objective on the financial services provider's stock, up from their prior price objective of $65.00.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on ESNT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Essent Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Essent Group in a report on Friday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Essent Group in a report on Friday, May 9th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Essent Group in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Compass Point set a $69.00 price objective on Essent Group and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $63.71.

Essent Group Price Performance

Shares of ESNT traded down $1.90 on Monday, hitting $56.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 949,594 shares, compared to its average volume of 668,004. The company has a market capitalization of $5.76 billion, a PE ratio of 8.32, a PEG ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.81. Essent Group has a fifty-two week low of $51.61 and a fifty-two week high of $65.34. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $58.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.11.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 9th. The financial services provider reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.03. Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.98% and a net margin of 57.29%. The business had revenue of $317.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $311.18 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.70 EPS. Essent Group's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Essent Group will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.79, for a total value of $146,975.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 27,365 shares in the company, valued at $1,608,788.35. This represents a 8.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 1,999 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $119,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 251,023 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,061,380. This represents a 0.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,740 shares of company stock valued at $581,386 in the last 90 days. 2.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Essent Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ESNT. AdvisorNet Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in shares of Essent Group by 68.8% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 584 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. US Bancorp DE increased its position in shares of Essent Group by 53.3% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,125 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Essent Group by 330.6% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,098 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 843 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.00% of the company's stock.

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.