Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Issues Positive Forecast for Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Stock Price

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) had its target price boosted by analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $74.00 to $78.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target suggests a potential upside of 13.84% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on ESNT. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Essent Group in a report on Friday, May 22nd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $68.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Essent Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Essent Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $68.71.

Essent Group Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:ESNT opened at $68.52 on Monday. Essent Group has a 12-month low of $55.34 and a 12-month high of $70.00. The company has a market capitalization of $6.31 billion, a PE ratio of 9.54, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a 50 day moving average of $62.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $362.69 million for the quarter. Essent Group had a return on equity of 11.91% and a net margin of 51.45%. As a group, analysts forecast that Essent Group will post 7.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essent Group

In other Essent Group news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 5,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.51, for a total transaction of $349,305.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 35,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,254,223.94. This represents a 13.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Mark Casale sold 29,329 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.35, for a total transaction of $1,916,650.15. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,184,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $142,733,745.05. The trade was a 1.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 39,837 shares of company stock valued at $2,591,612. 3.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Essent Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $346,000. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the second quarter worth approximately $239,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Essent Group by 160.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,280 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the second quarter worth $211,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Essent Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $224,000. 93.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.