38,358 Shares in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Acquired by Paralel Advisors LLC

Paralel Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 38,358 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,155,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Essent Group by 49.7% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Essent Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $200,000. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 1st quarter worth about $215,000. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 1st quarter worth about $220,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of Essent Group stock traded down $0.82 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $62.63. 388,465 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 500,235. Essent Group Ltd. has a twelve month low of $45.63 and a twelve month high of $64.69. The company has a market cap of $6.68 billion, a PE ratio of 9.48, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $60.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.24.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $272.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $308.33 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 14.40% and a net margin of 61.31%. Essent Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.61 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.02 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.81, for a total transaction of $294,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,596,103.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.81, for a total transaction of $294,050.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 27,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,596,103.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 11,188 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.14, for a total value of $672,846.32. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 199,359 shares in the company, valued at $11,989,450.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ESNT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Essent Group from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Barclays raised their price objective on Essent Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Essent Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $65.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, BTIG Research raised their target price on Essent Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $64.33.

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.