AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Shares Bought by Cwm LLC

Cwm LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 135.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,694 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,853 shares during the period. Cwm LLC’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $435,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of AXS. UBS Group AG raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 165.7% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 168,214 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,482,000 after acquiring an additional 104,915 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the third quarter worth about $341,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 43.2% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 60,866 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,431,000 after acquiring an additional 18,360 shares during the period. CI Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 2,642.2% in the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 2,989 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $168,000 after acquiring an additional 2,880 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the third quarter worth about $5,767,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE AXS opened at $71.07 on Friday. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $52.02 and a 12-month high of $74.05. The stock has a market cap of $6.02 billion, a PE ratio of 10.87, a P/E/G ratio of 0.26 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a 50-day moving average of $68.32 and a 200 day moving average of $62.47.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The insurance provider reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.17. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 10.34% and a return on equity of 19.11%. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.33 EPS. AXIS Capital’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.91%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director W Marston Becker purchased 3,025 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $66.58 per share, with a total value of $201,404.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 21,821 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,452,842.18. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, Director W Marston Becker purchased 3,025 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $66.58 per share, with a total value of $201,404.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 21,821 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,452,842.18. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Michael Millegan purchased 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $71.49 per share, with a total value of $100,086.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 9,016 shares in the company, valued at $644,553.84. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 6,425 shares of company stock valued at $444,351 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on AXS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $86.00 price objective on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $69.33.

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.