Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: Twelve brokerages give Axis Capital an average rating of "Moderate Buy" (nine buy, three hold) with an average 12‑month target of $122.80.
• Quarterly results beat: Axis reported EPS of $3.25 versus $2.97 expected and revenue of $1.73 billion versus $1.33 billion expected, with revenue up 17.8% year‑over‑year.
• Valuation and shareholder return: the stock opened near $99.31 with a market cap of $7.36 billion and a P/E of 8.02; the company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.44 ($1.76 annualized, ~1.8% yield) and has a low payout ratio of about 14%.

Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $122.80.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $122.00 price objective on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Axis Capital from $121.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Axis Capital from $115.00 to $106.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Axis Capital from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on Axis Capital from $141.00 to $140.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 13th.

Axis Capital Stock Down 2.1%

Axis Capital stock opened at $99.31 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.63. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $101.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $101.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Axis Capital has a twelve month low of $88.07 and a twelve month high of $110.34.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The insurance provider reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 18.72% and a net margin of 15.37%.Axis Capital's revenue for the quarter was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.38 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Axis Capital will post 13.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.21%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Axis Capital

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AXS. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 30.9% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,592,270 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $491,786,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083,579 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Axis Capital during the fourth quarter worth about $103,001,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Axis Capital during the third quarter worth about $56,705,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 147.0% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 745,591 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $79,845,000 after purchasing an additional 443,761 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 374.7% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 553,565 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $53,032,000 after purchasing an additional 436,944 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.

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