Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Purchases 4,474 Shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 19.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,806 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,474 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $1,514,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. KBC Group NV raised its stake in Essent Group by 15.8% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,009 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $193,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in Essent Group by 22.7% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 13,706 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $881,000 after purchasing an additional 2,532 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in Essent Group by 1.4% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 750,778 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,268,000 after purchasing an additional 10,684 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in Essent Group by 561.3% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 56,983 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,663,000 after purchasing an additional 48,366 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Essent Group by 53.9% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares in the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essent Group Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:ESNT opened at $55.13 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $56.83 and a 200 day moving average of $58.27. Essent Group Ltd. has a 52 week low of $52.22 and a 52 week high of $65.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.09.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.09). Essent Group had a net margin of 58.69% and a return on equity of 13.35%. The firm had revenue of $315.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $313.88 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is an increase from Essent Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Essent Group’s payout ratio is presently 18.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on ESNT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Essent Group from $67.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $67.00 price objective on shares of Essent Group in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Barclays lowered shares of Essent Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.57.

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.