Radian Group (NYSE:RDN) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Radian Group (NYSE:RDN) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts have also commented on RDN. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of Radian Group in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $47.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Radian Group from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Radian Group from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, September 11th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Radian Group from $39.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.17.

Radian Group Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE RDN opened at $34.41 on Friday. Radian Group has a 1-year low of $31.50 and a 1-year high of $41.05. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $37.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Radian Group (NYSE:RDN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.20). The company had revenue of $574.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $556.55 million. Radian Group had a net margin of 32.60% and a return on equity of 13.65%. Radian Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 92.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Radian Group will post 4.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Radian Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th were given a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. Radian Group’s payout ratio is currently 26.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Radian Group news, EVP Meghan Bartholomew sold 7,812 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.94, for a total transaction of $280,763.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 39,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,408,955.82. This represents a 16.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 2.03% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Radian Group

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in RDN. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in Radian Group by 109.3% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 672 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Radian Group in the second quarter worth about $37,000. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Radian Group by 67.3% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,288 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Radian Group during the second quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in shares of Radian Group during the second quarter worth about $55,000. 95.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Radian Group

Radian Group Inc is a Philadelphia-based provider of private mortgage insurance and related risk-management services. Through its principal subsidiary, Radian Guaranty Inc, the company helps lenders manage credit risk on residential mortgages, primarily by insuring loans that have relatively low down payments. Mortgage insurance can enable qualified borrowers to obtain home financing without making a traditional 20% down payment.

Radian’s mortgage insurance products are designed for lenders, mortgage originators and investors in the United States.