Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Shares Sold by AlphaMark Advisors LLC

AlphaMark Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 4.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 5,453 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 273 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $351,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Essent Group by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,477,434 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $605,320,000 after purchasing an additional 75,825 shares in the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Essent Group during the fourth quarter valued at $267,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Essent Group by 921.0% in the first quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,952 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 4,467 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 2.0% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 26,133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,555,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Essent Group by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 12,895 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $767,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Essent Group

In other Essent Group news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 27,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,596,103.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Essent Group news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of Essent Group 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 directly owns 27,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,596,103.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total transaction of $127,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 25,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,616,203.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Stock Performance

Shares of ESNT stock opened at $63.92 on Friday. Essent Group Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $45.63 and a fifty-two week high of $65.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.67, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.12. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $62.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.93.

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

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th were given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.94%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ESNT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Essent Group from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Barclays increased their target price on Essent Group from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $63.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Essent Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $65.00 to $70.00 in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their target price 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. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.50.

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.