Head to Head Survey: Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) versus Finance of America Companies (NYSE:FOA)

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) and Finance of America Companies (NYSE:FOA) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends and earnings.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Essent Group and Finance of America Companies”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Essent Group	$1.26 billion	4.83	$689.97 million	$7.17	9.44
Finance of America Companies	$497.43 million	0.51	$45.24 million	($3.01)	-4.84

Essent Group has higher revenue and earnings than Finance of America Companies. Finance of America Companies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Essent Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Essent Group and Finance of America Companies, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Essent Group	0	5	3	0	2.38
Finance of America Companies	2	1	2	0	2.00

Essent Group presently has a consensus price target of $71.86, indicating a potential upside of 6.12%. Finance of America Companies has a consensus price target of $30.50, indicating a potential upside of 109.54%. Given Finance of America Companies’ higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Finance of America Companies is more favorable than Essent Group.

Profitability

This table compares Essent Group and Finance of America Companies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Essent Group	51.45%	11.91%	9.09%
Finance of America Companies	-0.10%	28.39%	0.35%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

93.0% of Essent Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.2% of Finance of America Companies shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.6% of Essent Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 35.4% of Finance of America Companies shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility & Risk

Essent Group has a beta of 0.76, indicating that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Finance of America Companies has a beta of 1.65, indicating that its stock price is 65% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Essent Group beats Finance of America Companies on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. It serves the originators of residential mortgage loans, such as regulated depository institutions, mortgage banks, credit unions, and other lenders. Essent Group Ltd. was incorporated in 2008 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.

About Finance of America Companies

Finance of America Companies Inc. a financial service holding company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of a retirement solutions platform in the United States. It operates through two segments: Retirement Solutions and Portfolio Management. The Retirement Solutions segment engages in the loan origination activities comprising home equity conversion, proprietary reverse, and hybrid mortgage loans for senior homeowners. The Portfolio Management segment provides product development, loan securitization, loan sales, risk management, servicing oversight, and asset management services for borrowers and investors. The company was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in Plano, Texas.