Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Shares Down 5.6% on Disappointing Earnings

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT)’s share price traded down 5.6% on Friday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as low as $61.02 and last traded at $61.9580. 264,111 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average session volume of 664,797 shares. The stock had previously closed at $65.64.

The financial services provider reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.14). Essent Group had a net margin of 55.63% and a return on equity of 12.40%. The firm had revenue of $312.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $312.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.58 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis.

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. This is an increase from Essent Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Essent Group’s payout ratio is 18.05%.

Key Essent Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Essent Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Essent raised its quarterly dividend alongside the report, which supports yield-seeking investors and signals confidence in cash flow. Dividend and Results Press Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue was essentially in line with consensus at ~$312.4M (est. ~$312.6M), limiting the positive surprise from sales even as comps were slightly negative. Sales In Line Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings call and transcripts are posted (management commentary and slide deck available) — investors should review the call for commentary on margin drivers, loss trends and capital deployment plans. Yahoo Earnings Transcript Seeking Alpha Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: EPS missed consensus: reported $1.60 vs. street $1.74, which is the primary reason for the negative price reaction as it undercut near-term earnings expectations. Earnings Miss Article
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue declined ~0.8% YoY and the slight topline softness combined with the EPS miss is pressuring sentiment; analysts and investors will watch forward guidance and mortgage/insurance trends for signs of stabilization. Earnings Snapshot

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ESNT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Essent Group from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on shares of Essent Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Essent Group from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Essent Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Essent Group

In other news, SVP Mary Lourdes Gibbons sold 4,352 shares of Essent Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.00, for a total value of $291,584.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 237,896 shares in the company, valued at $15,939,032. This trade represents a 1.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Essent Group by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,987,945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $779,336,000 after acquiring an additional 85,295 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Essent Group by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,076,950 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $206,628,000 after purchasing an additional 129,672 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Essent Group during the 4th quarter worth about $155,516,000. Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its stake in Essent Group by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,952,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $126,900,000 after purchasing an additional 13,318 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Essent Group by 78.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,517,859 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $92,180,000 after purchasing an additional 669,577 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Essent Group Stock Down 6.3%

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $62.32. The firm has a market cap of $5.95 billion, a PE ratio of 8.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

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.