Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Buy"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Universal Insurance from “strong buy” to “buy,” though the broader analyst consensus remains “Buy” with an average price target of $51.00.
• Universal Insurance reported quarterly EPS of $1.93, beating estimates of $1.57, but revenue of $444.31 million fell short of the $601.67 million forecast.
• The company authorized a $20 million share-repurchase program, allowing it to buy back up to 1.6% of outstanding shares; the stock recently traded at $48.47, near its 52-week high.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Universal Insurance from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Universal Insurance from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (a+)" rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Universal Insurance from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $51.00.

Universal Insurance Trading Up 1.9%

NYSE:UVE opened at $48.47 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Universal Insurance has a 1-year low of $28.32 and a 1-year high of $50.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.06 and a beta of 0.69. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.80.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $444.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $601.67 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 38.15% and a net margin of 13.94%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Universal Insurance will post 6.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, October 29th that allows the company to repurchase $20 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the insurance provider to buy up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Share repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Insurance

In related news, Chairman Sean Downes sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.98, for a total transaction of $879,600.00. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 1,084,645 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $47,702,687.10. The trade was a 1.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 15.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Insurance

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance during the second quarter worth $111,007,000. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. acquired a new stake in Universal Insurance during the second quarter valued at $29,849,000. Renaissancere Holdings Ltd. acquired a new stake in Universal Insurance during the second quarter valued at $24,144,769. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Universal Insurance during the second quarter valued at $10,530,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Universal Insurance in the second quarter valued at about $8,104,000. 66.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Universal Insurance

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc NYSE: UVE is an insurance holding company that provides property and casualty insurance through its subsidiaries. Its primary business is personal residential insurance, with products designed to protect homeowners and other residential property owners against risks such as wind, fire, theft and other covered losses.

The company's offerings include homeowners, condominium unit owners, renters and dwelling fire insurance, along with related residential property coverage.

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