Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Rating Lowered to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Wednesday.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

Shares of UVE opened at $23.41 on Wednesday. Universal Insurance has a 1 year low of $16.50 and a 1 year high of $23.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $20.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.86. The firm has a market cap of $657.59 million, a PE ratio of 9.51 and a beta of 0.84.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The insurance provider reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $384.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $349.91 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 4.82%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Universal Insurance will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Universal Insurance Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Universal Insurance’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.73%. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.16%.

Insider Activity at Universal Insurance

In related news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.08, for a total transaction of $441,600.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 990,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,863,616. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 90,000 shares of company stock worth $1,908,700. Corporate insiders own 17.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Insurance

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Universal Insurance during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $928,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new position in Universal Insurance in the 4th quarter valued at $594,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Universal Insurance during the 4th quarter valued at $118,000. Man Group plc increased its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 31.3% in the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 71,313 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,502,000 after purchasing an additional 17,020 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 120.6% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 126,602 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,666,000 after buying an additional 69,205 shares in the last quarter. 66.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.