Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK) Shares Purchased by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS grew its stake in shares of Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK) by 0.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 82,037 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 450 shares during the quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS owned about 0.06% of Verisk Analytics worth $21,983,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in Verisk Analytics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,325,000. OFI Invest Asset Management grew its position in shares of Verisk Analytics by 2,181.7% in the second quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 2,875 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $723,000 after purchasing an additional 2,749 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,115,000. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new stake in Verisk Analytics in the 1st quarter valued at $2,340,000. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Verisk Analytics by 15.8% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 183,252 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $43,198,000 after acquiring an additional 24,977 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.00% of the company’s stock.

Verisk Analytics Stock Performance

Shares of Verisk Analytics stock traded down $0.32 on Thursday, reaching $278.81. 26,004 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 791,310. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.36, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.37 billion, a PE ratio of 43.55, a PEG ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a 50 day moving average of $269.62 and a 200 day moving average of $263.70. Verisk Analytics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $217.34 and a 52 week high of $287.13.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The business services provider reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $725.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $722.19 million. Verisk Analytics had a net margin of 32.65% and a return on equity of 274.13%. Verisk Analytics’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.52 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Verisk Analytics, Inc. will post 6.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Verisk Analytics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Verisk Analytics’s payout ratio is presently 24.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRSK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Verisk Analytics from $263.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised Verisk Analytics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Barclays increased their price objective on Verisk Analytics from $275.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and set a $279.00 target price on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Verisk Analytics from $243.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $285.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verisk Analytics

In other news, CFO Elizabeth Mann sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.33, for a total value of $54,266.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 15,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,289,184.64. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Verisk Analytics Profile

Verisk Analytics, Inc provides data analytics and technology solutions to the insurance markets in the United States and internationally. It offers policy language, prospective loss costs, policy writing and rating rules, and various underwriting solutions for risk selection and segmentation, pricing, and workflow optimization; property- and auto- specific rating and underwriting information solutions that allows clients to understand, quantify, underwrite, mitigate, and avoid potential loss for risks; catastrophe modeling solutions, which enables companies to identify, quantify, and plan for the financial consequences of catastrophes for use by insurers, reinsurers, intermediaries, financial institutions, and governments.