Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Buys Shares of 60,100 Radian Group Inc. $RDN

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Radian Group Inc. (NYSE:RDN) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 60,100 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,988,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Compass Rose Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Radian Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $9,960,000. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Radian Group by 10.7% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,454,087 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $52,667,000 after purchasing an additional 140,003 shares during the last quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in Radian Group by 49.9% during the third quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 125,763 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,555,000 after purchasing an additional 41,861 shares during the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Radian Group by 331.2% in the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 94,867 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,414,000 after purchasing an additional 72,867 shares during the period. Finally, Prana Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Radian Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,979,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.33% of the company’s stock.

Radian Group Stock Performance

NYSE:RDN opened at $37.68 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $35.77 and its 200-day moving average is $34.72. The company has a market cap of $5.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.28, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. Radian Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $31.50 and a 52-week high of $38.84.

Radian Group (NYSE:RDN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The insurance provider reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.10. Radian Group had a net margin of 40.50% and a return on equity of 13.57%. The business had revenue of $466.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $377.83 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.99 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 46.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Radian Group Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Radian Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 2nd were given a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 2nd. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Radian Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Edward J. Hoffman sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.00, for a total value of $570,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 93,708 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,560,904. This represents a 13.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Chairman Howard Bernard Culang sold 3,612 shares of Radian Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.00, for a total transaction of $130,032.00. Following the sale, the chairman owned 8,050 shares in the company, valued at $289,800. This represents a 30.97% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 75,516 shares of company stock worth $2,747,576. 2.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on RDN shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Radian Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Bank of America raised Radian Group from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $35.00 to $43.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on Radian Group in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $47.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group cut their price objective on Radian Group from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Radian Group from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.17.

About Radian Group

Radian Group Inc (NYSE:RDN) is a leading provider of private mortgage insurance and related risk management solutions in the United States. Through its primary subsidiary, Radian Guaranty Inc, the company underwrites borrower-paid and lender-paid mortgage insurance that protects lenders and investors from potential losses arising from borrower defaults. Radian’s core business focuses on supporting residential mortgage originations and servicing by offering capital-efficient credit protection and credit risk transfer strategies.

Beyond mortgage insurance, Radian offers an array of real estate transaction services under its Radian Title division.