Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT – Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,220,000 shares, a decline of 17.6% from the May 31st total of 1,480,000 shares. Currently, 1.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 437,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.8 days.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group
Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its holdings in Essent Group by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 366,573 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $14,252,000 after acquiring an additional 24,993 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,041,000. Albion Financial Group UT increased its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 3,822 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $153,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 265,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,323,000 after acquiring an additional 8,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Essent Group by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 41,423 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,611,000 after purchasing an additional 2,941 shares during the last quarter. 93.34% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Essent Group Stock Performance
Essent Group stock opened at $47.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.07 billion, a PE ratio of 6.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.15. Essent Group has a one year low of $34.27 and a one year high of $47.48. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $44.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $42.14.
Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT – Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $256.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $250.57 million. Essent Group had a net margin of 73.35% and a return on equity of 16.47%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.52 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Essent Group will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Essent Group Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 31st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.75%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research firms have recently issued reports on ESNT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Essent Group from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 17th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded Essent Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $50.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, June 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essent Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.50.
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.