HCI Group (NYSE:HCI) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of HCI Group (NYSE:HCI) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Sunday morning.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on HCI. Zacks Research raised HCI Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings cut HCI Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of HCI Group in a report on Friday, January 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $231.67.

HCI Group Price Performance

NYSE:HCI opened at $152.65 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $158.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $171.93. The stock has a market cap of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of 6.73 and a beta of 1.09. HCI Group has a 52 week low of $136.37 and a 52 week high of $210.50.

HCI Group (NYSE:HCI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The insurance provider reported $7.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.87 by $2.38. HCI Group had a return on equity of 36.34% and a net margin of 33.19%.The business had revenue of $246.24 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $232.36 million. As a group, analysts forecast that HCI Group will post 16.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCI Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. HCI Group’s payout ratio is 7.05%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HCI. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in HCI Group by 5.5% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 14,023 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,093,000 after acquiring an additional 727 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in HCI Group by 4.8% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 4,930 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $736,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in HCI Group by 78.7% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 102,377 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $15,278,000 after acquiring an additional 45,097 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in HCI Group by 115.9% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,399 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 751 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in HCI Group by 557.6% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 217 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.99% of the company’s stock.

HCI Group Company Profile

HCI Group, Inc (NYSE: HCI) is a holding company whose principal business is the underwriting and issuance of property and casualty insurance through its insurance subsidiaries. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, the company focuses primarily on personal-line insurance products, writing homeowners, condominium, renters and mobile home policies. HCI Group also offers wind-only and flood coverage in coastal regions across the state, providing tailored solutions to both coastal and non-coastal communities.

The company distributes its insurance products through a network of independent agents and brokers, leveraging local market expertise to assess risk and deliver personalized service.