O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Boosts Stake in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,301 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,866 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in CNA Financial were worth $1,708,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CNA. Savant Capital LLC raised its holdings in CNA Financial by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 9,139 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $442,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its position in shares of CNA Financial by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,703 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $179,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 29.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,265 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in CNA Financial by 16.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,051 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $99,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the period. Finally, Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in CNA Financial by 28.3% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,475 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CNA Financial news, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 12,991 shares of CNA Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.06, for a total value of $637,338.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 75,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,709,524.72. The trade was a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Dino Robusto purchased 3,896 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $47.63 per share, for a total transaction of $185,566.48. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chairman now directly owns 724,338 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,500,218.94. This trade represents a 0.54 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 25,491 shares of company stock worth $1,261,838. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CNA. StockNews.com lowered shares of CNA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on CNA Financial from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th.

CNA Financial Stock Down 7.4 %

Shares of CNA Financial stock opened at $47.00 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.70 billion, a PE ratio of 13.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.47. CNA Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $42.33 and a 52-week high of $52.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.14. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 6.72%. On average, analysts anticipate that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.92%. This is an increase from CNA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. CNA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.27%.

About CNA Financial

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.