CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) Shares Acquired by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) by 6,505.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,780 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,314 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in CNA Financial were worth $1,506,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CNA. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in CNA Financial by 97.9% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,152,528 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $51,760,000 after purchasing an additional 570,172 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its position in shares of CNA Financial by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 16,067 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $786,000 after purchasing an additional 2,272 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in CNA Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $273,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in CNA Financial by 178.9% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 76,136 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,505,000 after buying an additional 48,837 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CNA Financial by 69.3% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 26,737 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,309,000 after buying an additional 10,940 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CNA shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of 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 increased their price target on shares of CNA Financial from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised CNA Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th.

CNA Financial Stock Down 1.7 %

CNA stock opened at $50.09 on Monday. CNA Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $40.92 and a 52-week high of $52.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.38 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50-day moving average of $49.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.26 and a quick ratio of 0.26.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last released 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 company had revenue of $3.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.06 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.68 EPS for the current year.

CNA Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. CNA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 36.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CNA Financial

In related news, EVP Douglas Worman sold 22,973 shares of CNA Financial stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 133,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,521,628.75. The trade was a 14.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Mark Steven James sold 18,547 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.58, for a total value of $938,107.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,917 shares in the company, valued at $1,159,141.86. The trade was a 44.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

About CNA Financial

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.