The Goldman Sachs Group Has Lowered Expectations for Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Stock Price

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) had its target price reduced by The Goldman Sachs Group from $68.00 to $60.00 in a report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on ESNT. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Essent Group from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Essent Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $65.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.00.

Essent Group Stock Performance

Shares of ESNT opened at $55.25 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $62.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $59.32. Essent Group has a 52-week low of $47.56 and a 52-week high of $65.33. The company has a market cap of $5.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.01, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.12.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.80 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 60.15%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 969.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.66 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Essent Group will post 6.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Essent Group news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total value of $127,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 25,416 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,616,203.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Essent Group by 726.8% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 463 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Essent Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 167.1% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 836 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter worth $47,000. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Essent Group

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.