Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT) Stock Has Average Target Price of $72.00

Posted by Geri Gentry on Oct 15th, 2026

Shares of Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE:ESNT – Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $71.14.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Essent Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Essent Group from $72.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Barclays boosted their price target on Essent Group from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Essent Group from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, BTIG Research initiated coverage on Essent Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on ESNT

Insider Buying and Selling at Essent Group

In related news, Director Roy Kasmar sold 4,837 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.71, for a total value of $332,350.27. Following the sale, the director owned 21,361 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,467,714.31. This represents a 18.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Vijay Bhasin sold 14,175 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $992,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 184,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,899,180. This trade represents a 7.14% 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 sold 70,146 shares of company stock worth $4,900,365 in the last three months. 3.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Essent Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ESNT. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in shares of Essent Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Essent Group by 790.6% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 672 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in Essent Group by 111.8% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 879 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Essent Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Essent Group by 82.3% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 981 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares during the period. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Essent Group Stock Performance

Shares of ESNT stock opened at $62.85 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $5.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 1.18. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $66.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $63.44. Essent Group has a one year low of $55.34 and a one year high of $70.37.

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $362.69 million during the quarter. Essent Group had a net margin of 51.45% and a return on equity of 11.91%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Essent Group will post 7.60 EPS for the current year.

Essent Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 31st. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Essent Group’s payout ratio is presently 19.53%.

About Essent Group

(Get Free Report)

Essent Group Ltd. is a Bermuda-based holding company focused on private mortgage insurance and related risk-management solutions for the U.S. residential mortgage market. Through its subsidiaries, the company helps protect mortgage lenders and investors against losses when borrowers default on home loans.

Essent’s primary business is conducted through Essent Guaranty, Inc, which provides mortgage insurance for conventional residential mortgages, generally supporting loans made to borrowers with down payments below traditional thresholds.