Causeway Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Causeway Capital Management LLC increased its position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 79.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 728,331 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 321,608 shares during the period. AXIS Capital makes up 1.5% of Causeway Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Causeway Capital Management LLC owned about 0.87% of AXIS Capital worth $64,545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AXS. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in AXIS Capital by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,931 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $171,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in AXIS Capital by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,799 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $248,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 900 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 28.5% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 833 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,959.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,404,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $224,786,435.50. This trade represents a 47.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded AXIS Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, January 13th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $93.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on AXIS Capital from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.75.

AXIS Capital Trading Down 0.4 %

AXS stock traded down $0.35 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $94.60. 265,048 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 604,187. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. The business has a 50 day moving average of $94.11 and a 200-day moving average of $89.43. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 52-week low of $60.64 and a 52-week high of $101.42.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 18.16%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio is 14.25%.

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.