LSV Asset Management Acquires 37,000 Shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

LSV Asset Management boosted its holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 5.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 709,900 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 37,000 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in Axis Capital were worth $76,023,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management bought a new position in Axis Capital during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Axis Capital during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Axis Capital during the 3rd quarter worth $43,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Axis Capital during the 4th quarter worth $51,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in Axis Capital during the 4th quarter worth $55,000. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Axis Capital from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Axis Capital from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Axis Capital from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $122.00 target price on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Friday, January 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.10.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

AXS opened at $99.85 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $7.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.54. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 52-week low of $88.07 and a 52-week high of $110.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The business’s fifty day moving average is $100.32 and its 200-day moving average is $102.01.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.72 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 18.12% and a net margin of 16.00%.Axis Capital’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.17 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 13.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.11%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 2,542 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.69, for a total value of $250,869.98. Following the sale, the director directly owned 46,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,573,985.43. This trade represents a 5.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Axis Capital Profile

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.