Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Sells 59,931 Shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc $UVE

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) by 61.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,815 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 59,931 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Universal Insurance were worth $1,049,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UVE. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its holdings in Universal Insurance by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 1,836,718 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $43,530,000 after buying an additional 116,199 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 805,199 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $19,083,000 after buying an additional 69,289 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 9.8% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 668,641 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $15,847,000 after acquiring an additional 59,752 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 171.5% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 343,786 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,148,000 after acquiring an additional 217,184 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Universal Insurance by 3.7% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 255,200 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,077,000 after acquiring an additional 9,046 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

Shares of UVE stock opened at $34.51 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $967.91 million, a PE ratio of 8.14 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $28.50 and a 200-day moving average of $26.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a one year low of $18.72 and a one year high of $35.84.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.26. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 7.74% and a return on equity of 28.25%. The firm had revenue of $400.03 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $366.36 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. This represents a dividend yield of 195.0%. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.40, for a total transaction of $628,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman owned 1,283,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,302,276.80. This trade represents a 1.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Jon Springer sold 35,435 shares of Universal Insurance stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.41, for a total value of $1,113,013.35. Following the transaction, the director owned 271,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,531,835.48. This represents a 11.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 75,435 shares of company stock valued at $2,248,013. 17.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on UVE. Zacks Research raised Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy”.

Universal Insurance 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.