JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Price Target to $60.00

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) had its price target dropped by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $67.00 to $60.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 8.77% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on ESNT. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Essent Group from $73.00 to $67.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Essent Group from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Essent Group from $68.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $64.71.

Essent Group Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE:ESNT opened at $55.16 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $59.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.99, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.09. Essent Group has a 1-year low of $49.41 and a 1-year high of $65.33.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.08). Essent Group had a net margin of 60.15% and a return on equity of 13.81%. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.66 EPS. Essent Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 969.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Essent Group will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.59, for a total value of $127,180.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 25,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,616,203.44. This represents a 7.30 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Essent Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Inspire Investing LLC grew its stake in Essent Group by 2.8% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $413,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 50,569 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,841,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in Essent Group by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 15,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,000,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Essent Group by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $790,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its position in Essent Group by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 32,752 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,106,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.