Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. Has $8.11 Million Stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. raised its position in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 850.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 78,158 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 69,937 shares during the period. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Axis Capital were worth $8,114,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $671,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp increased its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 25,065 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,513,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,231 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $825,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Intrust Bank NA increased its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 6,042 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $606,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,280 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $329,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

NYSE AXS opened at $91.95 on Wednesday. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1 year low of $77.21 and a 1 year high of $107.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $7.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.84, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $96.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $97.77.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.41. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.93 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Axis Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $123.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $115.29.

Insider Transactions at Axis Capital

In related news, insider Daniel J. Draper sold 4,305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.57, for a total value of $420,038.85. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,269 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,587,366.33. The trade was a 20.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Henry B. Smith sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.67, for a total transaction of $345,345.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 47,295 shares in the company, valued at $4,666,597.65. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,205 shares of company stock worth $1,188,048 over the last three months. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.