Roth Capital Weighs in on Essent Group Ltd.’s Q2 2024 Earnings (NYSE:ESNT)

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) – Stock analysts at Roth Capital increased their Q2 2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Essent Group in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, May 7th. Roth Capital analyst H. Fong now forecasts that the financial services provider will post earnings of $1.70 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $1.66. The consensus estimate for Essent Group’s current full-year earnings is $6.56 per share. Roth Capital also issued estimates for Essent Group’s Q3 2024 earnings at $1.72 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $6.85 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $1.72 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $1.77 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.80 EPS and Q4 2025 earnings at $1.80 EPS.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on ESNT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Essent Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Essent Group from $64.00 to $61.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Essent Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $58.00 to $61.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut Essent Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.75.

Essent Group Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of ESNT stock opened at $56.41 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.64. Essent Group has a fifty-two week low of $42.46 and a fifty-two week high of $59.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.05.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The financial services provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.14. Essent Group had a return on equity of 14.24% and a net margin of 61.40%. The firm had revenue of $298.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $298.69 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ESNT. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Essent Group by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,543 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Essent Group by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 48,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,542,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in Essent Group by 2.9% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 10,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $613,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Essent Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Essent Group by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 26,133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,555,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. Essent Group’s payout ratio is 16.94%.

Essent Group Company 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.