Essent Group Ltd. Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.31 (NYSE:ESNT)

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of 0.31 per share by the financial services provider on Wednesday, December 10th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st.

Essent Group has raised its dividend by an average of 0.3%per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 6 years. Essent Group has a dividend payout ratio of 17.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Essent Group to earn $7.20 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.24 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.2%.

Essent Group Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE ESNT traded up $0.37 during trading on Friday, hitting $61.15. 1,109,369 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 718,033. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $61.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.03 billion, a PE ratio of 8.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.91. Essent Group has a 12-month low of $51.61 and a 12-month high of $65.90.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.75 by ($0.08). Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.66% and a net margin of 56.36%.The firm had revenue of $298.41 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.65 earnings per share. Essent Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Essent Group will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Essent Group

In other Essent Group news, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 11,479 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total value of $746,135.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 196,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,799,930. This represents a 5.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total value of $260,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 243,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,796,495. The trade was a 1.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 28,190 shares of company stock valued at $1,802,316. Corporate insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Essent Group by 7.7% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 69,879 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,033,000 after purchasing an additional 5,001 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 145,465 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,396,000 after buying an additional 10,465 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essent Group in the 1st quarter valued at $890,000. CWM LLC raised its stake in Essent Group by 1,036.3% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,613 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $439,000 after acquiring an additional 6,943 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MQS Management LLC acquired a new stake in Essent Group during the 1st quarter worth $472,000. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.