Fox Run Management L.L.C. Acquires Shares of 12,062 Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)

Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 12,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $657,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ESNT. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Essent Group during the fourth quarter valued at $2,080,000. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 30.9% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 112,394 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,119,000 after purchasing an additional 26,537 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Essent Group by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 839,455 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,700,000 after purchasing an additional 91,595 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the fourth quarter worth about $781,000. Finally, Semanteon Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Essent Group in the fourth quarter worth about $1,454,000. Institutional investors own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

Essent Group Stock Up 2.1 %

NYSE ESNT opened at $56.75 on Tuesday. 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 $5.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.30, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a fifty day moving average of $56.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $58.04.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released 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 return on equity of 13.35% and a net margin of 58.69%. The firm had revenue of $315.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $313.88 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.64 earnings per share. Essent Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Essent Group Ltd. will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.19%. This is an increase from Essent Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.