Essent Group Ltd. $ESNT Holdings Increased by Jane Street Group LLC

Key Points

• Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in Essent Group Ltd. by 760.5% during the first quarter, now owning 367,460 shares valued at approximately $21.2 million.
• Essent Group recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $1.24 and a dividend yield of 2.0%.
• The company's stock is trading down 1.1% and has a market capitalization of $6.20 billion, with a P/E ratio of 9.18.

Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) by 760.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 367,460 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 324,757 shares during the quarter. Jane Street Group LLC owned approximately 0.35% of Essent Group worth $21,210,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in Essent Group during the 1st quarter valued at $993,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its stake in Essent Group by 280.5% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 10,328 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $596,000 after acquiring an additional 7,614 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Essent Group in the 1st quarter worth about $332,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essent Group by 16.6% in the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,111 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $468,000 after buying an additional 1,157 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Essent Group by 66.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,953 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 778 shares during the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essent Group news, Director William Spiegel sold 6,451 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.74, for a total transaction of $404,735.74. Following the sale, the director directly owned 26,252 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,647,050.48. The trade was a 19.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.79, for a total transaction of $146,975.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 27,365 shares in the company, valued at $1,608,788.35. This trade represents a 8.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 14,950 shares of company stock worth $919,651. 3.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Essent Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $60.00 price target on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Compass Point restated a "buy" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, DOWLING & PARTN downgraded shares of Essent Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $63.67.

Essent Group Stock Performance

Shares of ESNT stock traded down $0.64 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $62.11. The stock had a trading volume of 111,565 shares, compared to its average volume of 733,766. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Essent Group Ltd. has a twelve month low of $51.61 and a twelve month high of $65.33. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a PE ratio of 9.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.85.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 56.36% and a return on equity of 12.66%. The business had revenue of $319.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $317.46 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.91 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Essent Group's payout ratio is 18.10%.

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.