AQR Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA - Free Report) by 41.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,939,336 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 567,926 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.72% of CNA Financial worth $93,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of CNA. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in CNA Financial by 663.4% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 771 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CNA Financial by 29.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,265 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of CNA Financial by 28.3% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,475 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $71,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of CNA Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,051 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.45% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at CNA Financial

In related news, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 12,991 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.06, for a total value of $637,338.46. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 75,612 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,709,524.72. This trade represents a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Dino Robusto sold 6,250 shares of CNA Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.86, for a total value of $305,375.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 720,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,200,796.12. The trade was a 0.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,741 shares of company stock worth $1,559,401. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CNA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on CNA Financial from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com lowered shares of CNA Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th.

CNA Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CNA traded down $0.09 on Tuesday, reaching $47.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 87,313 shares, compared to its average volume of 325,819. CNA Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $42.33 and a 52-week high of $52.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $48.63. The company has a market cap of $12.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.63, a PEG ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.53.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $3.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.68 billion. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 6.72%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.30 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $0.46 dividend. This is a positive change from CNA Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.83%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. CNA Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.27%.

About CNA Financial

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.