Allianz Asset Management GmbH Increases Holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 41.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,370,479 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 400,068 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned 1.78% of Axis Capital worth $146,765,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AXS. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Axis Capital during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $103,001,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Axis Capital during the third quarter valued at approximately $56,705,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake 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 valued at $53,032,000 after purchasing an additional 436,944 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 196.5% during the third quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 484,619 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $46,426,000 after purchasing an additional 321,145 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arbejdsmarkedets Tillaegspension bought a new position in shares of Axis Capital during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,137,000. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AXS shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Axis Capital from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $115.00 to $106.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Mizuho set a $137.00 price objective on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $123.00 to $119.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $122.10.

Insider Activity

In other Axis Capital news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 2,542 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.69, for a total value of $250,869.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 46,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,573,985.43. This trade represents a 5.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Axis Capital Price Performance

Shares of AXS opened at $97.66 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $7.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.51. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a twelve month low of $88.07 and a twelve month high of $110.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company has a 50 day moving average of $99.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $101.79.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.72 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 18.12%. Axis Capital's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.17 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 13.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.11%.

Axis Capital Company Profile

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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