Moran Wealth Management LLC Invests $233,000 in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Moran Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,624 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $233,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in AXIS Capital in the 4th quarter valued at $88,175,000. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in AXIS Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,118,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in AXIS Capital by 7,053.2% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 353,941 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,366,000 after acquiring an additional 348,993 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in AXIS Capital by 24.4% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $129,371,000 after purchasing an additional 318,784 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in AXIS Capital by 131.9% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 254,551 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $20,265,000 after purchasing an additional 144,792 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AXIS Capital Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE AXS opened at $91.89 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market cap of $7.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.91. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $60.45 and a 12-month high of $98.11. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $90.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $86.25.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 18.89%. On average, research analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.92%. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a report on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, January 13th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $99.88.

Insider Activity

In other AXIS Capital news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,234,636 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,922.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,543,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $406,613,715. This represents a 32.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About AXIS Capital

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.