Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Shares Cross Below Fifty Day Moving Average Following Weak Earnings

Key Points

• Essent Group’s quarterly EPS of $1.82 missed the $1.85 consensus, although revenue of $374.2 million exceeded estimates and EPS rose from $1.67 a year earlier.
• Following the earnings announcement, shares fell below their 50-day moving average of $65.58, trading as low as $62.78.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, equivalent to $1.40 annually and a yield of about 2.2%.

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) passed below its fifty day moving average during trading on Friday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $65.58 and traded as low as $62.78. Essent Group shares last traded at $63.36, with a volume of 1,119,616 shares changing hands.

The financial services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $374.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $344.17 million. Essent Group had a net margin of 51.45% and a return on equity of 11.91%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.67 EPS.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Essent Group's payout ratio is presently 19.53%.

Trending Headlines about Essent Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Essent Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Essent authorized a new $500 million share repurchase plan, which could support per-share results and return capital to shareholders. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share. Essent outlines premiums and share repurchase plan Essent declares dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue was $374.2 million, above analysts’ roughly $344.2 million estimate. EPS also rose year over year, to $1.82 from $1.67. Essent posts better-than-expected sales
• Positive Sentiment: Essent outlined approximately $320 million in 2026 property-and-casualty written premiums, pointing to activity beyond its core mortgage insurance business. Essent outlines 2026 premiums
• Negative Sentiment: EPS of $1.82 missed consensus estimates of $1.85–$1.88. The modest shortfall may have overshadowed the revenue beat and year-over-year earnings growth. Essent lags Q3 earnings estimates

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ESNT has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Essent Group from $72.00 to $66.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped 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. Bank of America downgraded shares of Essent Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $78.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Friday, October 30th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Essent Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $70.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Essent Group news, Director Douglas Pauls sold 2,500 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.70, for a total transaction of $174,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 30,154 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,101,733.80. This trade represents a 7.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Roy Kasmar sold 4,837 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.71, for a total value of $332,350.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 21,361 shares in the company, valued at $1,467,714.31. This trade represents a 18.46% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 69,663 shares of company stock worth $4,866,555 over the last ninety days. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ESNT. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in Essent Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Essent Group during the third quarter worth approximately $43,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 790.6% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 757 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 672 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 82.3% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 981 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.00% of the company's stock.

Essent Group Trading Down 7.6%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.84, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $65.58 and a 200-day moving average of $63.09.

About Essent Group

Essent Group Ltd. NYSE: ESNT is a Bermuda-based holding company that provides private mortgage insurance and related risk-management services in the United States. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company helps protect mortgage lenders and investors against losses when borrowers default on residential mortgage loans.

Its principal business is mortgage insurance for low-down-payment conventional residential mortgages, enabling qualified borrowers to obtain home financing with less than a 20% down payment.

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