Essent Group

What Essent Group does

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE: ESNT) is a Bermuda-domiciled holding company that, through its operating subsidiaries, provides private mortgage insurance, reinsurance, and title insurance and settlement services to the US housing finance industry. The company's core offering is private mortgage insurance, which enables borrowers to obtain residential mortgages with down payments below 20% by providing credit risk transfer to originating lenders such as banks, credit unions, and non-bank mortgage companies. The group also operates Essent Re, which provides mortgage reinsurance and has expanded into property and casualty reinsurance through Lloyd's of London quota share arrangements in 2026, and a title insurance and settlement services arm that complements the mortgage origination workflow.

The company monetizes primarily through risk-based, recurring insurance premiums earned on policies in force, with premium rates filed with state regulators and calculated per policy based on loan amount, loan-to-value ratio, credit score, property type, and other credit risk factors. Underlying technology comprises risk assessment and underwriting systems, statistical credit risk models, and portfolio analytics platforms that monitor delinquency and loss performance. The go-to-market is a B2B enterprise sales motion executed through direct account management and dedicated lender-relationship teams, supplemented by investor relations activity given the company's public-company status.

Essent generated approximately $1.25 billion in full-year 2025 revenue and $336.07 million in Q1 2026 (up 5.8% year-over-year), with $11.1 billion in new insurance written in Q1 2026. The business carries a 12% annualized return on average equity, a 2.29% delinquency rate, and operates with a 501-1000 employee base. The company returned nearly $700 million to shareholders in 2025 through dividends and repurchases, has raised its dividend for seven consecutive years, and is incorporated in Bermuda with a market capitalization of approximately $5.69 billion as of February 2026.

Name

Essent Group

Legal name

Essent Group Ltd.

Website

https://essentgroup.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Essent Group Ltd. (NYSE: ESNT) is a Bermuda-domiciled holding company that provides private mortgage insurance, reinsurance, and title insurance and settlement services to US mortgage lenders and the housing finance industry, with a Q1 2026 annualized revenue run rate above $1.3 billion.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Mortgage Insurance

NAICS

Management of Companies and Enterprises (551)

SIC

Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411)

akta.pro primary industry

Mortgage Default Insurance & Loss Mitigation Services (Claims, Recoveries, MI Servicing) (FSALAJAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Quality Control (QC), Compliance & Audit Tools for Underwriting (FSALALAL)

Keywords

• Private mortgage insurance
• Mortgage reinsurance
• Title insurance services
• Credit risk transfer
• Housing finance insurance

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamilton

HQ country

Bermuda

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Net Premiums Earned: Core revenue stream from private mortgage insurance premiums. Premiums are earned on insurance policies written, with revenue driven by the volume of new mortgage insurance written (NMI) and the existing insurance in force portfolio.
2. Reinsurance Premiums: Reinsurance revenue from Essent Re subsidiary, including expansion into property and casualty reinsurance through Lloyd's quota share agreements. Essent Re generated approximately $80 million in third-party net income and targets $100-150 million in written premium through Lloyd's arrangements.
3. Title Insurance and Settlement Services: Revenue from title insurance and settlement services provided to the housing finance industry, complementing the core mortgage insurance offerings.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Essent Group Ltd. is a Bermuda-based holding company offering private mortgage insurance, reinsurance, and title insurance and settlement services to serve the housing finance industry. The company enables affordable homeownership by providing private mortgage insurance that allows borrowers to obtain mortgages with down payments below 20%, while also providing reinsurance capacity and title/closing services to mortgage lenders and real estate participants.

Product overview

Essent Group Ltd. is a Bermuda-based holding company offering private mortgage insurance, reinsurance, and title insurance and settlement services to serve the housing finance industry. The company operates as a unified portfolio of three core product lines—private mortgage insurance (the primary offering), reinsurance and risk management products, and title insurance with settlement services—all targeted at mortgage lenders, investors, and participants in the housing finance ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Private Mortgage Insurance
• Reinsurance
• Title Insurance and Settlement Services

Quantifiable outcome

• 12% return on average equity
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Lloyd's of LondoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 February 2026Essent Re expanded into property and casualty reinsurance through Lloyd's quota share agreements, effective Q1 2026. The arrangement targets $100-150 million of written premium with approximately two-thirds expected to be earned in 2026. This represents a significant diversification of Essent Re's third-party reinsurance business.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Fidelity National Financial: Largest US title insurer with a much broader real-estate services platform; overlaps Essent's title business and adjacent mortgage-related services.
• Arch Capital Group: Broader P&C/specialty insurer whose Arch MI unit is a major US private MI competitor, offering overlapping capability within a much larger diversified insurance platform.
• RenaissanceRe Holdings: Bermuda-based specialty and mortgage reinsurer with broader P&C reinsurance franchise; a counterparty and competitor to Essent Re, particularly relevant given the Lloyd's expansion.

Direct peers

• Enstar Group: Bermuda-domiciled legacy and reinsurance specialist with similar Bermuda holding-company structure and reinsurance focus; comparable to Essent Re on third-party reinsurance expansion.
• MGIC Investment Corporation: NYSE-listed pure-play US private mortgage insurer; the most direct structural comparable to Essent's PMI franchise, sharing GSE channel, master policy economics, and underwriting cycle exposure.
• Radian Group Inc. Direct US mortgage insurance peer with a similar mix of mortgage insurance and complementary real-estate services; competes head-to-head with Essent for GSE-approved lender volume.
• Genworth Financial (Enact Holdings): Parent/major shareholder of Enact Holdings, one of the largest US MI underwriters and the closest scale comparable to Essent on the insured side.
• First American Financial Corporation: Title insurance and settlement services provider that overlaps with Essent's title/settlement business and competes for the same US mortgage closing dollar.
• Stewart Information Services Corporation: Public US title insurance and real-estate services company; comparable to Essent's title insurance and settlement services line within the same US mortgage channel.

Others

• PartnerRe: Covéa-owned global reinsurer that was an early investor in Essent's IPO and a long-standing reinsurance counterparty for Essent Re; structurally related via the mortgage reinsurance relationship.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors5 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Essent Group