Winmill & CO. Inc. Invests $13.79 Million in Essent Group Ltd. $ESNT

Key Points

• Winmill & CO. Inc. acquired 214,500 Essent Group shares worth approximately $13.79 million, making ESNT about 3.1% of its portfolio and its 13th-largest holding. Institutional investors collectively own 93% of the company.
• Essent reported quarterly EPS of $2.08 on $362.69 million in revenue, with a 51.45% net margin and 11.91% return on equity. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, representing a 2.1% annualized yield.
• Insiders have sold 96,348 shares worth $6.55 million over the past 90 days. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating, with an average price target of $71.86 versus the stock’s reported $68.10 price.

Winmill & CO. Inc. purchased a new stake in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 214,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $13,788,000. Essent Group comprises about 3.1% of Winmill & CO. Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Winmill & CO. Inc. owned approximately 0.24% of Essent Group as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ESNT. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essent Group by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,238 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Essent Group by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 16,584 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,078,000 after buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Essent Group by 26.4% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,162 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP grew its holdings in Essent Group by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 38,436 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,499,000 after buying an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in Essent Group by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 21,801 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,324,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.00% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Essent Group news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.51, for a total transaction of $349,305.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 35,494 shares in the company, valued at $2,254,223.94. This represents a 13.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 14,175 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $992,250.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 184,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,899,180. This represents a 7.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 96,348 shares of company stock worth $6,552,539. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company's stock.

Essent Group Stock Performance

Essent Group stock opened at $68.10 on Monday. Essent Group Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $55.34 and a fifty-two week high of $70.37. The company has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a PE ratio of 9.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $65.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Essent Group had a return on equity of 11.91% and a net margin of 51.45%.The business had revenue of $362.69 million for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ESNT shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Essent Group from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Essent Group from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Roth Capital increased their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essent Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Essent Group has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $71.86.

Essent Group Profile

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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