Palomar Holdings, Inc. (PLMR) - What Are Investment Firms Thinking About This Stock?

Key Points

• Analysts remain bullish on Palomar: Five analysts rate the stock a “buy” and one a “strong buy,” with an average 12-month price target of $160, above its reported $140.53 opening price.
• Palomar exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $2.36 EPS versus the $2.19 consensus estimate, while posting an 18.61% net margin and 23.28% return on equity.
• Institutional investors own 90.25% of the company, while recent insider sales were primarily made to cover tax obligations tied to vested equity awards; Palomar also pays a $0.45 quarterly dividend, yielding about 1.3%.

Palomar Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLMR - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Buy" from the six analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $160.00.

Several analysts recently commented on PLMR shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Palomar from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research raised shares of Palomar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Evercore set a $152.00 target price on shares of Palomar in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Palomar from $166.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Palomar from $132.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th.

Palomar Price Performance

Palomar stock opened at $140.53 on Wednesday. Palomar has a one year low of $100.81 and a one year high of $147.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.50. The business has a fifty day moving average of $131.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $126.59. The company has a market cap of $3.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.89 and a beta of 0.35.

Palomar (NASDAQ:PLMR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.17. Palomar had a net margin of 18.61% and a return on equity of 23.28%. The business had revenue of $314.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $621.52 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.76 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Palomar will post 9.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Palomar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Palomar's payout ratio is 24.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Palomar

In related news, CFO T. Christopher Uchida sold 791 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.74, for a total value of $101,042.34. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 16,238 shares in the company, valued at $2,074,242.12. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, President Jon Christianson sold 528 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.75, for a total value of $67,452.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 66,970 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,555,417.50. The trade was a 0.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 9,822 shares of company stock worth $1,299,206. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Palomar

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Palomar by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,364 shares of the company's stock worth $931,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Palomar by 81.5% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 294 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio raised its position in shares of Palomar by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 8,900 shares of the company's stock worth $1,064,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Palomar by 38.0% in the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,017 shares of the company's stock valued at $122,000 after buying an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Palomar in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.25% of the company's stock.

About Palomar

Palomar Holdings, Inc is a specialty insurance company that provides property and casualty insurance products in markets that may be underserved by traditional insurers. The company focuses on risks that are complex, difficult to place or exposed to natural catastrophes, using specialized underwriting and risk-management capabilities.

Its offerings include residential and commercial earthquake insurance, inland marine coverage, specialty property insurance, casualty products, workers' compensation and other tailored insurance solutions.

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