AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $100.25.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on AXIS Capital in a report on Monday, January 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price objective on the stock. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on AXIS Capital from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AXIS Capital news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,959.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,404,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $224,786,435.50. This represents a 47.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AXIS Capital

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in AXIS Capital by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,144,247 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $367,265,000 after purchasing an additional 17,764 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,444,128 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $305,219,000 after purchasing an additional 12,571 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,178,512 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $281,680,000 after buying an additional 53,514 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in AXIS Capital by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,510 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $238,344,000 after buying an additional 134,157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in AXIS Capital by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,042,925 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $181,045,000 after buying an additional 20,976 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AXIS Capital Stock Performance

NYSE AXS opened at $95.00 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $91.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $87.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60. AXIS Capital has a 1 year low of $60.45 and a 1 year high of $98.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.67 billion, a PE ratio of 7.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.91.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts predict that AXIS Capital will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.25%.

AXIS Capital Company 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.