RLI (NYSE:RLI) Lowered to Sell Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of RLI (NYSE:RLI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Monday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of RLI from $88.00 to $80.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Oppenheimer started coverage on RLI in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of RLI in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $91.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded RLI from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $95.00 to $61.00 in a research note on Monday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on RLI from $100.50 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, RLI presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $82.80.

RLI Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of RLI stock opened at $72.52 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $82.71 and a 200-day moving average of $78.91. The company has a market cap of $6.65 billion, a PE ratio of 19.36 and a beta of 0.47. RLI has a 1-year low of $67.04 and a 1-year high of $91.14.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.64). RLI had a return on equity of 16.38% and a net margin of 19.53%. Research analysts forecast that RLI will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

RLI Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a None dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a $2.145 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.7%. RLI’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.49%.

Insider Activity at RLI

In other RLI news, CEO Craig W. Kliethermes purchased 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $71.35 per share, with a total value of $356,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 139,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,931,206.50. The trade was a 3.73 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Michael E. Angelina purchased 2,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $72.62 per share, for a total transaction of $159,764.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 23,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,707,586.68. This trade represents a 10.32 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 9,200 shares of company stock valued at $660,774 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 5.09% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in RLI by 620.0% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 180 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in RLI in the third quarter worth $32,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of RLI by 53.8% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 203 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of RLI by 76.9% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 230 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American National Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of RLI by 62.5% during the 3rd quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 403 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the period. 77.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.