Choreo LLC Invests $287,000 in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

Choreo LLC purchased a new stake in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 5,154 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $287,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESNT. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Essent Group during the first quarter valued at $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Essent Group by 49.7% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Essent Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $176,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Essent Group in the fourth quarter worth about $200,000. Finally, HBK Sorce Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Essent Group in the first quarter worth about $215,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Essent Group

In related news, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.81, for a total transaction of $294,050.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 27,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,596,103.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 11,188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.14, for a total transaction of $672,846.32. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 199,359 shares in the company, valued at $11,989,450.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Roy James Kasmar sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 27,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,596,103.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Price Performance

NYSE:ESNT opened at $64.28 on Thursday. Essent Group Ltd. has a 1-year low of $45.63 and a 1-year high of $65.08. The company has a 50-day moving average of $61.60 and a 200 day moving average of $57.82. The firm has a market cap of $6.86 billion, a PE ratio of 9.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.12.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $272.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $308.33 million. Essent Group had a net margin of 61.31% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.61 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.02 EPS for the current fiscal 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 issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ESNT. BTIG Research increased their price target on Essent Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Essent Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $65.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Essent Group from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Essent Group from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Essent Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.33.

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.