Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 36,389 Shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its position in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) by 3.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,030,215 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 36,389 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.99% of Essent Group worth $59,464,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $69,364,000. Cooke & Bieler LP raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 45.9% in 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 buying an additional 700,730 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 43.2% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,709,029 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $93,040,000 after buying an additional 515,171 shares in the last quarter. Walleye Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 144.8% in the fourth quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 846,169 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,065,000 after buying an additional 500,494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,966,171 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $107,038,000 after buying an additional 445,012 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.00% of the company's stock.

Essent Group Stock Down 3.3%

Shares of NYSE:ESNT traded down $2.07 during trading on Monday, hitting $59.83. 632,650 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 664,583. Essent Group Ltd. has a 1-year low of $51.61 and a 1-year high of $65.34. The company has a market capitalization of $6.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.81. The business's 50 day moving average is $58.80 and its 200-day moving average is $57.04.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Essent Group had a net margin of 57.29% and a return on equity of 12.98%. The company had revenue of $317.56 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $311.18 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.70 earnings per share. Essent Group's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio is 18.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESNT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Essent Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $65.00 to $67.00 in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Essent Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $63.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Essent Group news, 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $146,975.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 27,365 shares in the company, valued at $1,608,788.35. This trade represents a 8.37% 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 over the last 90 days. 3.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Essent Group 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.