Douglas J. Pauls Sells 3,000 Shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Stock

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Director Douglas J. Pauls sold 3,000 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.80, for a total value of $179,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,165 shares in the company, valued at $1,624,467. This trade represents a 9.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Essent Group Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Essent Group stock opened at $59.58 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $56.31. Essent Group Ltd. has a 12-month low of $51.61 and a 12-month high of $65.34. The company has a market capitalization of $6.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.87.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $317.56 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $311.18 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. Essent Group’s payout ratio is 18.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ESNT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Essent Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Essent Group in a report on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.71.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Essent Group in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in shares of Essent Group by 68.8% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its position in shares of Essent Group by 53.3% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,125 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.