Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons Sells 4,000 Shares

Key Points

• Essent Group SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock for $260,000, reducing her ownership to 243,023 shares, valued at approximately $15.8 million.
• Essent Group recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.93 EPS, surpassing analysts' expectations, and achieved a revenue of $319.14 million, reflecting a 2.0% year-over-year increase.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share, which translates to an annualized dividend of $1.24, representing a yield of 1.9%.

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 4,000 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $260,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 243,023 shares in the company, valued at $15,796,495. This represents a 1.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Mary Lourdes Gibbons also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, August 12th, Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 3,760 shares of Essent Group stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.00, for a total transaction of $233,120.00.
• On Tuesday, July 1st, Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 240 shares of Essent Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.00, for a total transaction of $14,880.00.

Essent Group Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of ESNT stock traded down $0.21 on Tuesday, reaching $64.50. The company had a trading volume of 142,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 732,634. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a market cap of $6.36 billion, a PE ratio of 9.40, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50-day moving average of $60.68 and a 200-day moving average of $58.58. Essent Group Ltd. has a 12 month low of $51.61 and a 12 month high of $65.90.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, August 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.25. Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.66% and a net margin of 56.36%.The company had revenue of $319.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $317.46 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.91 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio is 18.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ESNT shares. DOWLING & PARTN lowered Essent Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Compass Point reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Friday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $60.00 price target on Essent Group in a research note on Friday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $60.00 target price on Essent Group and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut shares of Essent Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Essent Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $63.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ESNT. AdvisorNet Financial Inc acquired a new stake in Essent Group in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 1,765.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 429 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in Essent Group during the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings 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 worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 20.2% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,114 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.00% of the company's stock.

About Essent Group

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.