Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Cuts Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Price Target to $71.00

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) had its price target reduced by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $72.00 to $71.00 in a report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

ESNT has been the topic of several other research reports. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $67.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays lowered Essent Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $69.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Essent Group from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.57.

Essent Group Price Performance

Shares of Essent Group stock opened at $56.13 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $56.19 and its 200 day moving average is $58.97. The firm has a market cap of $5.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.21, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.11. Essent Group has a one year low of $51.93 and a one year high of $65.33.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.09). Essent Group had a net margin of 58.69% and a return on equity of 13.35%. The company had revenue of $315.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $313.88 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.64 EPS. Essent Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Essent Group will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Essent Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.37%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Essent Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Essent Group during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its position in Essent Group by 68.8% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in Essent Group by 53.3% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,125 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Essent Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Institutional investors own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Company Profile

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.