CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) Short Interest Update

CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,490,000 shares, an increase of 18.3% from the April 30th total of 1,260,000 shares. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 385,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.9 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at CNA Financial

In related news, Chairman Dino Robusto sold 6,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.63, for a total transaction of $297,687.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 705,588 shares of the company's stock, valued at $33,607,156.44. The trade was a 0.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 12,991 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.06, for a total transaction of $637,338.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 75,612 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,709,524.72. The trade was a 14.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 43,006 shares of company stock worth $2,099,564 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in CNA Financial by 56.4% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 624 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in CNA Financial by 663.4% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 771 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in CNA Financial by 60.4% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,166 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in CNA Financial by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,265 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC increased its stake in CNA Financial by 28.3% during the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,475 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.45% of the company's stock.

CNA Financial Price Performance

Shares of CNA Financial stock traded up $0.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $47.15. 240,313 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 321,534. The stock has a market cap of $12.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.40, a PEG ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.53. 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 firm's fifty day moving average price is $47.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.51. CNA Financial has a 12 month low of $42.85 and a 12 month high of $52.36.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.13). CNA Financial had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 6.72%. The business had revenue of $3.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.30 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that CNA Financial will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current year.

CNA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.90%. CNA Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on CNA shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of CNA Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of CNA Financial from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th.

CNA Financial Company Profile

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.