American Century Companies Inc. Buys 18,147 Shares of RLI Corp. $RLI

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in RLI Corp. by 117.5% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 18,147 shares, bringing its total holdings to 33,596 shares worth approximately $2.7 million.
• RLI Corp. recently reported earnings of $0.84 per share for the quarter, surpassing analyst expectations, with revenue reaching $562.28 million, a 20% increase year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share, to be paid on September 19, representing a 0.9% yield based on an annualized payout of $0.64.

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Free Report) by 117.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,596 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 18,147 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.'s holdings in RLI were worth $2,699,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in RLI. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in RLI by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 3,187 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $525,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in RLI by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 470,224 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $77,507,000 after purchasing an additional 57,918 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in RLI by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 45,905 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,566,000 after purchasing an additional 2,337 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC boosted its stake in RLI by 90.2% in the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 13,651 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,250,000 after purchasing an additional 6,473 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in RLI by 212.8% in the 4th quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 18,579 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,062,000 after purchasing an additional 12,639 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.89% of the company's stock.

RLI Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of RLI stock traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $67.20. 150,692 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 512,660. The company has a 50 day moving average of $68.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.08. RLI Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $65.14 and a fifty-two week high of $91.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $6.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.25 and a beta of 0.65.

RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $562.28 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $445.55 million. RLI had a net margin of 17.81% and a return on equity of 15.82%. RLI's quarterly revenue was up 20.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.72 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that RLI Corp. will post 3.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLI Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. RLI's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised shares of RLI from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $78.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Jennifer L. Klobnak bought 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $69.15 per share, with a total value of $207,450.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer owned 98,450 shares in the company, valued at $6,807,817.50. This trade represents a 3.14% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 2.16% of the company's stock.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.