Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Acquires 30,924 Shares of Essent Group Ltd. $ESNT

Key Points

• Pictet Asset Management increased its stake in Essent Group by 8.2% in Q1, buying 30,924 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 409,309 shares worth about $23.9 million.
• Essent Group posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.82 versus the $1.68 consensus and revenue of $336.07 million, up 5.8% year over year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, equal to a $1.40 annualized payout and a 2.2% yield, while analysts currently view the stock as a consensus Hold.

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its holdings in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) by 8.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 409,309 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 30,924 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned about 0.44% of Essent Group worth $23,920,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $346,000. M&T Bank Corp bought a new stake in Essent Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $239,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Essent Group by 160.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,080 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $126,000 after buying an additional 1,280 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Essent Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Essent Group in the 2nd quarter worth $224,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.00% of the company's stock.

Essent Group Price Performance

ESNT opened at $64.41 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.94 billion, a PE ratio of 9.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.76. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $60.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.31. Essent Group Ltd. has a 52-week low of $55.22 and a 52-week high of $67.09.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.14. Essent Group had a net margin of 53.64% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business had revenue of $336.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $297.56 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.69 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.25 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Essent Group's payout ratio is currently 19.94%.

Insider Activity

In other Essent Group news, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 4,250 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.01, for a total transaction of $276,292.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 233,336 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,169,173.36. The trade was a 1.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 5,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.51, for a total value of $349,305.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 35,494 shares in the company, valued at $2,254,223.94. This trade represents a 13.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,314 shares of company stock worth $2,010,987. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ESNT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Essent Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Essent Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Essent Group in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. They set a "sector perform" rating and a $68.00 price target for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essent Group has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $66.57.

About Essent Group

Essent Group Ltd. NYSE: ESNT is a publicly traded insurance holding company specializing in private mortgage insurance and mortgage reinsurance solutions. Through its primary subsidiary, Essent Guaranty, the company provides credit protection to mortgage lenders, helping mitigate the risk of borrower default on residential mortgage loans. Essent's insurance policies enable lenders to offer low-down-payment programs, supporting homebuyers in achieving homeownership with reduced upfront equity requirements.

Beyond traditional mortgage insurance, Essent offers a suite of risk management and analytics services designed to help financial institutions monitor and manage mortgage portfolios.

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