Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC Acquires 371 Shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC lifted its position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,030 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the period. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $357,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in AXIS Capital by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,178,512 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $281,680,000 after purchasing an additional 53,514 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 7.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,675,417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $134,110,000 after acquiring an additional 112,536 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in AXIS Capital by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,650,965 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $146,309,000 after purchasing an additional 25,908 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,267,338 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $100,921,000 after acquiring an additional 43,687 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the 4th quarter valued at about $88,175,000. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital Stock Performance

NYSE AXS opened at $90.68 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.34, a PEG ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.67. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $93.96 and a 200 day moving average of $88.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a twelve month low of $60.45 and a twelve month high of $101.42.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 18.89%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AXIS Capital

In other news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total value of $199,999,959.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,404,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $224,786,435.50. This trade represents a 47.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com lowered AXIS Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, January 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price objective for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.50.

AXIS Capital Profile

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.