AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Short Interest Update

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) was the target of a large drop in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,080,000 shares, a drop of 5.3% from the November 30th total of 1,140,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 550,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.0 days. Currently, 1.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AXS. TD Cowen upped their price objective on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of AXIS Capital from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $78.00 to $89.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $98.71.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital during the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. increased its stake in AXIS Capital by 32.6% in the second quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 602 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 424.6% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 985 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter worth about $99,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 158.0% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,308 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 801 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE AXS traded down $0.15 on Wednesday, hitting $88.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 270,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 571,641. The firm has a market cap of $7.41 billion, a PE ratio of 12.29, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s 50-day moving average is $87.41 and its 200 day moving average is $79.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. AXIS Capital has a 1-year low of $53.88 and a 1-year high of $94.89.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.16. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 10.82%. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.34 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that AXIS Capital will post 10.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is presently 24.41%.

About AXIS Capital

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism.