RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) Receives $60.50 Consensus PT from Brokerages

RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the seven brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $63.00.

RLI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group set a $74.00 price target on RLI in a research report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen lowered RLI from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut RLI from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $57.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded RLI from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded RLI from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd.

RLI Stock Down 6.8%

Shares of RLI opened at $61.20 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.86 and a beta of 0.38. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.47. RLI has a twelve month low of $47.26 and a twelve month high of $69.19.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $575.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $568.70 million. RLI had a net margin of 22.22% and a return on equity of 17.61%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.82 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that RLI will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from RLI’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. RLI’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.13%.

Insider Transactions at RLI

In other news, Director David B. Duclos purchased 2,500 shares of RLI stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $51.99 per share, with a total value of $129,975.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 9,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $508,462.20. This trade represents a 34.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Clark C. Kellogg acquired 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $50.90 per share, with a total value of $152,700.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 4,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $229,151.80. This represents a 199.73% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 16,500 shares of company stock worth $858,955. 2.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On RLI

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UBS Group AG raised its position in shares of RLI by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 607,176 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $38,847,000 after purchasing an additional 48,563 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in RLI by 1,030.2% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 34,009 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,176,000 after purchasing an additional 31,000 shares during the last quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp bought a new stake in RLI during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,535,000. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its stake in RLI by 33.1% during the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,579,955 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $147,161,000 after purchasing an additional 641,769 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hingham Institution for Savings purchased a new position in RLI in the fourth quarter worth about $1,919,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.89% of the company’s stock.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corporation (NYSE:RLI) is a specialty property and casualty insurance company focused on underwriting niche risks for businesses and individuals. Headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, the company operates through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering customized coverage solutions. RLI’s approach emphasizes disciplined underwriting, targeted product development and strong customer service to maintain profitability and long-term growth.

Founded in 1965 as Replacement Lens, Inc, RLI initially provided insurance for contact lens manufacturers before shifting its focus to specialty insurance in the 1980s.