BofA Raised Target Price on Essent Group (ESNT) to $68

Core Viewpoint - Essent Group Ltd. is identified as one of the 13 Deep Value Stocks to buy currently [1] Group 1: Financial Performance - Bank of America raised its target price for Essent Group by 3.0% to $68, maintaining a Buy recommendation after adjusting FY26 and FY27 earnings per share forecasts following Q4 results [2] - Essent's Q4 2025 earnings reported diluted earnings per share of $1.60 and net revenue of $312.40 million, both slightly below Bank of America and street consensus estimates [2] - The company wrote $11.8 billion in new insurance policies in Q4 2025, with an average base premium earned of 41 basis points, equating to $4.1 in annual premium for every $1,000 insured [4] Group 2: Strategic Insights - Despite the earnings miss, Essent's "Buy, Manage, & Distribute Operating Model" remains intact, with total insurance in force growing year-over-year [3] - The gross premium rate earned on insurance remained stable, and the company effectively managed risk by transferring some credit risk to high-quality reinsurers, albeit at a higher cost compared to the previous year [3] - Operating cash flows remained healthy, enabling Essent to increase its quarterly dividend rate to $0.35 per common share [4] Group 3: Company Overview - Essent Group Ltd. is a holding company that provides private mortgage insurance, reinsurance, and title insurance and settlement services through its subsidiaries [5]