Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Given New $61.00 Price Target at Barclays

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) had its price objective reduced by analysts at Barclays from $63.00 to $61.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 3.04% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on ESNT. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Essent Group from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Essent Group from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $65.00 to $63.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $68.14.

Essent Group Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Essent Group stock traded up $0.04 during trading on Monday, reaching $59.20. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 38,610 shares, compared to its average volume of 742,556. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.75. Essent Group has a 1-year low of $51.61 and a 1-year high of $67.09. The company has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $312.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $312.62 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 54.72%.Essent Group’s revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.58 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Essent Group will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essent Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESNT. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Essent Group in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Essent Group by 45.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in Essent Group by 97.1% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 676 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 333 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

About Essent Group

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE: ESNT) is a publicly traded insurance holding company specializing in private mortgage insurance and mortgage reinsurance solutions. Through its primary subsidiary, Essent Guaranty, the company provides credit protection to mortgage lenders, helping mitigate the risk of borrower default on residential mortgage loans. Essent’s insurance policies enable lenders to offer low-down-payment programs, supporting homebuyers in achieving homeownership with reduced upfront equity requirements.

Beyond traditional mortgage insurance, Essent offers a suite of risk management and analytics services designed to help financial institutions monitor and manage mortgage portfolios.