Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 182,671 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $9,945,000. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Essent Group as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 154.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 208,927 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,431,000 after purchasing an additional 126,899 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Essent Group by 2.9% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 47,182 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,993,000 after purchasing an additional 1,309 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its position in Essent Group by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 36,389 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,981,000 after purchasing an additional 3,637 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in Essent Group by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 7,356 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $400,000 after buying an additional 938 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in Essent Group by 39.8% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,207 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $229,000 after buying an additional 1,198 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.00% of the company's stock.
Essent Group Stock Up 0.9%
Shares of NYSE:ESNT traded up $0.55 on Thursday, reaching $59.04. The company had a trading volume of 484,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 637,084. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $56.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $56.33. Essent Group Ltd. has a twelve month low of $51.61 and a twelve month high of $65.34.
Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 return on equity of 13.35% and a net margin of 58.69%. The firm had revenue of $317.56 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $311.18 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.70 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Essent Group Dividend Announcement
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.16%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 1,777 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.07, for a total value of $106,744.39. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 253,022 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,199,031.54. This represents a 0.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Douglas J. Pauls sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.80, for a total transaction of $179,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 27,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,624,467. The trade was a 9.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 5,001 shares of company stock valued at $299,591. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company's stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Friday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Essent Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Essent Group in a report on Friday, May 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $61.71.
Read Our Latest Report on ESNT
Essent Group Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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