Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Short Interest Down 13.3% in January

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 1,691,860 shares, a decline of 13.3% from the January 15th total of 1,950,331 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 740,623 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days. Based on an average trading volume of 740,623 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days. Currently, 1.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 4,352 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.00, for a total transaction of $291,584.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 237,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,939,032. This represents a 1.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ESNT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Essent Group by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,987,945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $779,336,000 after purchasing an additional 85,295 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Essent Group by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,076,950 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $206,628,000 after acquiring an additional 129,672 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Essent Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $155,516,000. Cooke & Bieler LP raised its stake in shares of Essent Group by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,952,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $126,900,000 after purchasing an additional 13,318 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Essent Group by 43.7% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,864,067 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $121,183,000 after purchasing an additional 567,103 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE ESNT traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $62.13. 95,689 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 704,667. The business’s 50 day moving average is $63.76 and its 200-day moving average is $62.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 1.20. Essent Group has a 12-month low of $51.61 and a 12-month high of $67.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.90.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 13th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $312.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $312.62 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 54.72%.The company’s revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.58 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Essent Group will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Essent Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Essent Group’s payout ratio is 20.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on ESNT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Essent Group from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Essent Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essent Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.33.

Essent Group Company Profile

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.