Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $493,000 Stock Position in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,255 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 2,708 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.08% of Universal Insurance worth $493,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Universal Insurance by 7.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 689,767 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $15,289,000 after purchasing an additional 49,123 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 69.5% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 68,969 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,528,000 after buying an additional 28,278 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Universal Insurance in the third quarter valued at about $636,000. Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in Universal Insurance by 2,142.1% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 59,774 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,325,000 after acquiring an additional 57,108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in Universal Insurance by 90.7% during the second quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 56,502 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,060,000 after acquiring an additional 26,873 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 10th.

Insider Transactions at Universal Insurance

In other Universal Insurance news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 15,064 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.46, for a total value of $338,337.44. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,047,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,520,067.08. The trade was a 1.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jon Springer sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.63, for a total transaction of $515,750.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 383,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,905,993.64. This trade represents a 6.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 110,064 shares of company stock valued at $2,283,787 over the last ninety days. 17.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Universal Insurance Stock Down 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE:UVE opened at $19.98 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $565.15 million, a P/E ratio of 8.12 and a beta of 0.93. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $15.78 and a 12-month high of $23.39. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The insurance provider reported ($0.73) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.03) by $0.30. The business had revenue of $387.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $341.98 million. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 4.82% and a return on equity of 15.43%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.16) earnings per share. Analysts predict that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.02%.

About Universal Insurance

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.