Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 2,430 Shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its position in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 279,033 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 2,430 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Travelers Companies were worth $67,216,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of TRV. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,566,941 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,644,532,000 after buying an additional 120,228 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Travelers Companies by 12.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,048,691 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,289,079,000 after purchasing an additional 1,568,909 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 2.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,076,220 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,187,865,000 after purchasing an additional 114,714 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Travelers Companies by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,496,652 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $350,396,000 after purchasing an additional 10,285 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,085,635 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $254,169,000 after purchasing an additional 41,683 shares in the last quarter. 82.45% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Travelers Companies Price Performance

NYSE:TRV opened at $242.18 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $242.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $241.29. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $200.21 and a 1-year high of $269.55. The firm has a market cap of $54.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.64.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The insurance provider reported $9.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.50 by $2.65. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 10.77% and a return on equity of 19.06%. The company had revenue of $12.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $7.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 18.78 EPS for the current year.

Travelers Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. Travelers Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on TRV shares. Janney Montgomery Scott cut Travelers Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $280.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $213.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $268.00 price target (down previously from $273.00) on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Travelers Companies from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Travelers Companies from $278.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $261.05.

Insider Buying and Selling at Travelers Companies

In related news, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 3,740 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.80, for a total value of $990,352.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 250,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $66,301,683.20. This trade represents a 1.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Travelers Companies

The Travelers Companies, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides a range of commercial and personal property, and casualty insurance products and services to businesses, government units, associations, and individuals in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance, and Personal Insurance.