Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Boosts Holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its position in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 63.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 58,349 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,671 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.07% of Axis Capital worth $6,058,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Axis Capital by 1,542.9% in the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 575 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Axis Capital by 34.0% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System bought a new position in Axis Capital in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $126,000. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in Axis Capital by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,628 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $163,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd boosted its stake in Axis Capital by 119.8% during the 1st quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 2,040 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $204,000 after purchasing an additional 1,112 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Axis Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $125.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $123.00 price objective on shares of Axis Capital and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $115.00.

Axis Capital Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:AXS opened at $100.43 on Wednesday. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 52-week low of $83.14 and a 52-week high of $107.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.30, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $95.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $97.97.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.72 by $0.53. The company had revenue of $184.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.71 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 30th. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 14.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Axis Capital

In related news, insider Daniel J. Draper sold 4,305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 20.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Henry B. Smith sold 3,500 shares of Axis Capital stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.67, for a total value of $345,345.00. Following the transaction, the director 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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 12,205 shares of company stock valued at $1,188,048 over the last 90 days. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.