Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) released its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.32, FiscalAI reports. Essent Group had a net margin of 53.64% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business had revenue of $362.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $321.62 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.93 earnings per share. Essent Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year.

Here are the key takeaways from Essent Group’s conference call:

• Second-quarter earnings increased to $2.08 per diluted share from $1.82 in the prior quarter and $1.93 a year ago, producing a 13.4% annualized return on average equity.
• Essent continued returning capital, repurchasing nearly 6 million shares for approximately $350 million year to date and declaring a third-quarter dividend of $0.35 per share. Book value per share reached $63.01, up nearly 13% year over year.
• Mortgage insurance in force grew only 1.2% year over year to $249.7 billion as affordability constrained originations, although 84% persistency, a 747 weighted-average credit score, and a 2.53% default rate point to a stable existing portfolio.
• The company is expanding its P&C reinsurance and strategic investment activities, with first-half net premiums written rising sharply to $249 million and approximately $450 million invested in non-core strategic assets. Management views these businesses as longer-term capital-allocation opportunities, though the P&C combined ratio rose to 77.9% as the business mix changed.

Essent Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ESNT opened at $68.56 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $6.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.56, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.76. Essent Group has a fifty-two week low of $55.34 and a fifty-two week high of $70.00. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $61.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32.

Essent Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Essent Group’s payout ratio is presently 19.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Essent Group news, CEO Mark Casale sold 29,329 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.35, for a total transaction of $1,916,650.15. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,184,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $142,733,745.05. This trade represents a 1.33% decrease in their position. The sale 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, CFO David B. Weinstock sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were 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. The trade was a 13.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 a total of 39,837 shares of company stock valued at $2,591,612 over the last three months. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essent Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Essent Group by 43.7% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,864,067 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $121,183,000 after acquiring an additional 567,103 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Essent Group by 45.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,198,447 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $76,173,000 after acquiring an additional 372,881 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Essent Group by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,157,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $75,236,000 after purchasing an additional 158,792 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Essent Group by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,116,784 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $70,983,000 after buying an additional 36,586 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Essent Group by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 727,345 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,285,000 after purchasing an additional 47,876 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.00% of the company’s stock.

More Essent Group News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly earnings significantly beat expectations. Essent reported earnings of $2.08 per share, up from $1.93 a year earlier and above the $1.76–$1.77 analyst consensus. Essent Group Q2 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue also exceeded forecasts and grew strongly. Quarterly revenue was $362.69 million, ahead of the $321.62 million expected and 13.7% higher year over year. The company posted a 53.64% net margin and 12.01% return on equity. Essent Group Q2 2026 Earnings Results
• Positive Sentiment: Essent declared a $0.35-per-share quarterly dividend. Shareholders of record on August 31 will receive the payment on September 10. The dividend represents approximately $1.40 annually per share and a roughly 2.0% yield, supporting the stock’s income appeal. Essent Group Announces Second Quarter 2026 Results and Dividend

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.