Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Sets New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $67.53 and last traded at $67.3690, with a volume of 24810 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $66.37.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ESNT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Essent Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Essent Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Essent Group in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $68.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Essent Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essent Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.71.

Essent Group Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.25. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $6.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.63, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.76.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $336.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $297.56 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 53.64%.The business’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.69 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.24 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is 19.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essent Group

In related news, CEO Mark Casale sold 29,329 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.35, for a total value of $1,916,650.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,184,143 shares in the company, valued at $142,733,745.05. This trade represents a 1.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available 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 Essent Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.51, for a total transaction of $349,305.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 35,494 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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. Insiders have sold 39,837 shares of company stock valued at $2,591,612 in the last three months. Insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essent Group

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

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.