Radian Group Inc. (NYSE:RDN) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Radian Group Inc. (NYSE:RDN) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,310,000 shares, a growth of 25.7% from the October 31st total of 5,020,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,060,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.0 days. Currently, 4.3% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of Radian Group from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Radian Group from $32.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Radian Group from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Radian Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Radian Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $36.10.

Radian Group Price Performance

Shares of RDN stock traded up $0.25 during trading on Friday, hitting $35.79. The company had a trading volume of 500,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,042,269. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $34.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a current ratio of 2.01. Radian Group has a one year low of $24.92 and a one year high of $37.86.

Radian Group (NYSE:RDN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $319.05 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $320.30 million. Radian Group had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 45.96%. Equities analysts expect that Radian Group will post 4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Radian Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be given a dividend of $0.245 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 25th. This represents a $0.98 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. Radian Group’s dividend payout ratio is 25.39%.

Insider Activity at Radian Group

In related news, insider Derek Brummer sold 35,153 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.36, for a total value of $1,243,010.08. Following the sale, the insider now owns 186,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,595,877.60. This represents a 15.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Radian Group by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 42,413 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,319,000 after buying an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its position in Radian Group by 2.5% in the second quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 13,121 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $408,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Radian Group by 1.1% during the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 31,392 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,089,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC raised its stake in Radian Group by 4.5% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 8,494 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $295,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Radian Group by 5.2% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 9,516 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $319,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. 95.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Radian Group

Radian Group Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the mortgage and real estate services business in the United States. It operates through two segments, Mortgage Insurance and Homegenius segments. The Mortgage Insurance segment aggregates, manages, and distributes U.S. mortgage credit risk for mortgage lending institutions and mortgage credit investors, through private mortgage insurance on residential first-lien mortgage loans; and other credit risk management solutions, including contract underwriting.