Alpine Associates Management Inc. Takes Position in ProAssurance Corporation (NYSE:PRA)

Key Points

• Alpine Associates Management Inc. has acquired a new stake in ProAssurance Corporation, purchasing 221,300 shares valued at approximately $5.2 million, representing about 0.43% ownership of the company.
• Several institutional investors have increased their positions in ProAssurance, including Sterling Capital Management LLC, which boosted its ownership by 859.4% during the fourth quarter.
• ProAssurance reported earnings per share of $0.13 for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations, with revenue of $236.28 million, down 4.5% compared to the previous year.

Alpine Associates Management Inc. acquired a new position in ProAssurance Corporation (NYSE:PRA - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 221,300 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $5,167,000. Alpine Associates Management Inc. owned about 0.43% of ProAssurance at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in ProAssurance by 859.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,631 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,461 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of ProAssurance by 307.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,073 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 1,564 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of ProAssurance by 95.9% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,204 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 1,079 shares during the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of ProAssurance by 148.6% during the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 6,214 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 3,714 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new position in shares of ProAssurance during the 1st quarter valued at $205,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company's stock.

ProAssurance Price Performance

Shares of PRA stock traded down $0.10 during trading on Friday, hitting $23.66. The company had a trading volume of 744,005 shares, compared to its average volume of 666,192. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock's 50-day moving average is $23.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.85 and a beta of 0.12. ProAssurance Corporation has a 52 week low of $11.27 and a 52 week high of $23.95.

ProAssurance (NYSE:PRA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $236.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $272.85 million. ProAssurance had a return on equity of 4.51% and a net margin of 3.72%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.08 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that ProAssurance Corporation will post 0.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on PRA shares. Citigroup cut ProAssurance to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on ProAssurance from $18.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen began coverage on ProAssurance in a research note on Monday, May 19th. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Raymond James Financial lowered ProAssurance from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Citizens Jmp lowered ProAssurance from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, ProAssurance presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $21.50.

ProAssurance Profile

ProAssurance Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides property and casualty insurance, and reinsurance products in the United States. The company operates through Specialty Property and Casualty, Workers' Compensation Insurance, and Segregated Portfolio Cell Reinsurance segments. It offers professional liability insurance to healthcare providers and institutions, and attorneys and their firms; medical technology liability insurance to medical technology and life sciences companies; and custom alternative risk solutions, including assumed reinsurance, loss portfolio transfers, and captive cell programs for healthcare professional liability insureds.