Key Points
- CEO Mark Casale sold 21,607 Essent Group shares at an average price of $70.07, generating approximately $1.51 million. The Rule 10b5-1 transaction reduced his direct holdings by 1.05% to 2.04 million shares.
- Essent reported quarterly earnings of $2.08 per share on revenue of $362.69 million, with a 51.45% net margin and 11.91% return on equity. Analysts expect full-year earnings of approximately $7.60 per share.
- The stock opened at $68.59, near its 52-week high of $70.37, while analysts maintained a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $71.86. Essent also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35, representing a 2.0% annualized yield.
Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) CEO Mark Casale sold 20,246 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.18, for a total value of $1,420,864.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,061,298 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $144,661,893.64. This trade represents a 0.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.
Mark Casale also recently made the following trade(s):
- On Wednesday, August 19th, Mark Casale sold 21,607 shares of Essent Group stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.07, for a total value of $1,514,002.49.
- On Tuesday, July 7th, Mark Casale sold 29,329 shares of Essent Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.35, for a total value of $1,916,650.15.
- On Monday, July 6th, Mark Casale sold 1,245 shares of Essent Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.08, for a total value of $81,024.60.
- On Tuesday, June 30th, Mark Casale sold 3,763 shares of Essent Group stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.01, for a total value of $244,632.63.
Essent Group Stock Down 0.7%
ESNT stock opened at $68.59 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.99. Essent Group Ltd. has a twelve month low of $55.34 and a twelve month high of $70.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.16 billion, a PE ratio of 9.57, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.
Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Essent Group had a net margin of 51.45% and a return on equity of 11.91%. The firm had revenue of $362.69 million for the quarter. On average, equities analysts predict that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Essent Group Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. Essent Group's dividend payout ratio is 19.53%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several brokerages have commented on ESNT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Essent Group from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Essent Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Essent Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Essent Group from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Essent Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $71.86.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Essent Group
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Essent Group during the second quarter worth about $346,000. M&T Bank Corp bought a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $239,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Essent Group by 160.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,080 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,280 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $211,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $224,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.00% of the company's stock.
About Essent Group
(
Get Free Report)
Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE: ESNT) is a publicly traded insurance holding company specializing in private mortgage insurance and mortgage reinsurance solutions. Through its primary subsidiary, Essent Guaranty, the company provides credit protection to mortgage lenders, helping mitigate the risk of borrower default on residential mortgage loans. Essent's insurance policies enable lenders to offer low-down-payment programs, supporting homebuyers in achieving homeownership with reduced upfront equity requirements.
Beyond traditional mortgage insurance, Essent offers a suite of risk management and analytics services designed to help financial institutions monitor and manage mortgage portfolios.
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