StockNews.com Upgrades CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) to Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on CNA. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on CNA Financial from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America lifted their target price on CNA Financial from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th.

CNA Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CNA opened at $48.30 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $49.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.51. CNA Financial has a 1-year low of $38.87 and a 1-year high of $52.36. The stock has a market cap of $13.08 billion, a PE ratio of 10.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.22 and a beta of 0.65.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.01. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 13.30% and a net margin of 9.26%. The business had revenue of $3.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.15 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.06 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that CNA Financial will post 4.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. CNA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.67%.

Insider Activity at CNA Financial

In other CNA Financial news, EVP Mark Steven James sold 18,547 shares of CNA Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.58, for a total transaction of $938,107.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,159,141.86. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other CNA Financial news, EVP Douglas Worman sold 22,973 shares of CNA Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.75, for a total transaction of $1,119,933.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 133,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,521,628.75. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Mark Steven James sold 18,547 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.58, for a total value of $938,107.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,159,141.86. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 67,680 shares of company stock worth $3,355,577. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CNA. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new position in shares of CNA Financial during the first quarter worth about $231,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in CNA Financial by 9.5% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 58,958 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,678,000 after buying an additional 5,130 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in CNA Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $520,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in CNA Financial by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 706,279 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $32,079,000 after buying an additional 7,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. lifted its position in CNA Financial by 229.0% in the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 113,901 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,173,000 after buying an additional 79,280 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

CNA Financial Company Profile

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.