Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Has $10.50 Million Stake in Essent Group Ltd. $ESNT

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC trimmed its stake in Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) by 48.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 180,239 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 169,450 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Essent Group were worth $10,499,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Essent Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in Essent Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Essent Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of Essent Group by 97.1% during the 4th 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 period. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Essent Group by 111.8% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 879 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 464 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essent Group news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.51, for a total transaction of $349,305.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 35,494 shares in the company, valued at $2,254,223.94. This trade represents a 13.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Mark Casale sold 29,329 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.35, for a total value of $1,916,650.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,184,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $142,733,745.05. This represents a 1.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 57,151 shares of company stock valued at $3,717,718 over the last three months. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Essent Group Stock Performance

ESNT stock opened at $65.01 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $61.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.24. Essent Group Ltd. has a 12 month low of $55.34 and a 12 month high of $67.46. The company has a market capitalization of $5.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $336.07 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $297.56 million. Essent Group had a net margin of 53.64% and a return on equity of 12.01%. Essent Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.69 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Essent Group Ltd. will post 7.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Essent Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ESNT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Essent Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Essent Group from $61.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Roth Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Essent Group from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Essent Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.71.

Essent Group Company Profile

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.