AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) Now Covered by Analysts at BMO Capital Markets

BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued a market perform rating and a $93.00 price target on the insurance provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on AXS. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded AXIS Capital from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $78.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America upped their price objective on AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.75.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

AXIS Capital stock opened at $85.84 on Monday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $88.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.64. The stock has a market cap of $7.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.91, a P/E/G ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.95. AXIS Capital has a 12-month low of $53.88 and a 12-month high of $94.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 10.82%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.34 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AXIS Capital will post 10.83 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is 24.41%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AXIS Capital

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in AXIS Capital by 48.6% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 371,557 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,070,000 after purchasing an additional 121,437 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new position in AXIS Capital in the third quarter worth approximately $453,000. HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in AXIS Capital in the third quarter worth approximately $638,000. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the third quarter valued at approximately $507,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.4% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $129,371,000 after purchasing an additional 318,784 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

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.