Mortgage insurer Essent Group Ltd’s earnings rose by 24.6 per cent for the third quarter.The Bermudian-based company reported net income $144.6 million, or $1.47 per diluted share, for the three months ended September 30, compared to $116 million, or $1.18 per share, for the corresponding period a year earlier.Essent’s board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of 15 cents per common share. The dividend is payable on December 16, 2019, to shareholders of record on December 4, 2019.“We are pleased with our strong financial results for the third quarter and our continued progress in transitioning our franchise to a buy, manage and distribute model through the utilisation of EssentEdge and reinsurance,” said Mark Casale, chairman and chief executive officer. “Additionally, our recent financial strength rating upgrade by Moody’s to A3 was a significant achievement for Essent. We believe that this upgrade is further validation of the strength and sustainability that our buy, manage and distribute model provides our franchise.”Insurance in force as of September 30, 2019 was $161 billion, compared to $153.3 billion as of June 30, 2019 and $131.2 billion as of September 30, 2018. New insurance written for the third quarter was $18.7 billion, compared to $18.0 billion in the second quarter of 2019 and $13.9 billion in the third quarter of 2018. The combined ratio for the third quarter — the proportion of premium dollars spent on claims and expenses — was 25.3 per cent, compared to 24.7 per cent in the second quarter of 2019 and 25.4 per cent in the third quarter of 2018. Net premiums earned for the third quarter were $203.5 million, compared to $188.5 million in the second quarter of 2019 and $166.7 million in the third quarter of 2018. Essent said the company entered into its first quota share reinsurance transaction with a panel of third-party reinsurers during the third quarter.