Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Purchases 2,941 Shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT – Get Rating) by 7.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,423 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,941 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $1,611,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Essent Group by 43.2% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,832 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 43.9% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,668 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 509 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $137,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $149,000. Finally, Almitas Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $150,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.07% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE ESNT opened at $44.73 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $40.59. Essent Group Ltd. has a 1-year low of $34.27 and a 1-year high of $45.67. The firm has a market cap of $4.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.16.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.16. Essent Group had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 73.35%. The firm had revenue of $256.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $250.57 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.52 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 31st. Essent Group’s payout ratio is 14.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on ESNT shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Essent Group from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Essent Group from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 17th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Monday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on Essent Group in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.80.

Essent Group Profile

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Essent Group Ltd. is a holding company, which engages in the provision of banking services. It offers mortgage insurance, reinsurance, and risk management products. The company was founded by Mark A. Casale on July 1, 2008 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.