LSV Asset Management Trims Stake in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

LSV Asset Management cut its stake in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 6.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 575,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 40,000 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $30,355,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in Essent Group by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,543 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in Essent Group by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 48,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,542,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Essent Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Pearl River Capital LLC increased its position in Essent Group by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pearl River Capital LLC now owns 8,832 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 653 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its position in Essent Group by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 19,221 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $909,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essent Group Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of Essent Group stock opened at $54.54 on Monday. Essent Group Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $40.33 and a fifty-two week high of $59.90. The firm has a market cap of $5.83 billion, a PE ratio of 8.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.05. The business’s fifty day moving average is $55.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.52.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The financial services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.14. Essent Group had a return on equity of 14.24% and a net margin of 61.40%. The company had revenue of $298.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $298.69 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.59 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.56 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st will be given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.94%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Essent Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Essent Group from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. StockNews.com cut Essent Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Essent Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $58.00 to $61.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.38.

Essent Group 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.