Americana Partners LLC Makes New Investment in The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

Key Points

• Americana Partners LLC initiated a new position in Travelers Companies, buying 4,481 shares valued at about $1.3 million in the fourth quarter.
• Travelers reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, posting $7.71 per share versus the $6.80 estimate, while revenue of $11.92 billion also topped forecasts.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.25 per share from $1.10, bringing the annualized payout to $5.00 and the yield to about 1.6%.

Americana Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 4,481 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,300,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TRV. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its stake in Travelers Companies by 102.0% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 908,559 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $263,537,000 after acquiring an additional 458,746 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Travelers Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at $99,680,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Travelers Companies by 22.8% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,785,288 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $496,872,000 after purchasing an additional 331,170 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its stake in shares of Travelers Companies by 258.5% in the 2nd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 372,513 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $99,662,000 after purchasing an additional 268,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in shares of Travelers Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $75,303,000. Institutional investors own 82.45% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 1,557 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.64, for a total value of $483,666.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 259,590 shares of the company's stock, valued at $80,639,037.60. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael Frederick Klein sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.77, for a total value of $3,037,700.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,125 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,707,621.25. This represents a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 27,573 shares of company stock worth $8,427,646 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.39% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on TRV shares. Bank of America decreased their price target on Travelers Companies from $259.00 to $257.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Travelers Companies from $297.00 to $314.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Travelers Companies from $340.00 to $342.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Brean Capital began coverage on Travelers Companies in a report on Thursday, March 12th. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $309.13.

Travelers Companies Stock Performance

TRV stock opened at $306.67 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $299.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $293.05. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $249.19 and a 1-year high of $313.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $65.21 billion, a PE ratio of 9.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.50.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $7.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.80 by $0.91. Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 24.06% and a net margin of 15.54%.The firm had revenue of $11.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.11 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.91 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 28.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be given a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 10th. This is a positive change from Travelers Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. Travelers Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.09%.

Travelers Companies Profile

The Travelers Companies, Inc NYSE: TRV is a leading provider of property and casualty insurance products and services. The company underwrites a broad range of commercial and personal insurance lines, offering coverage designed to protect individuals, small and midsize businesses, and large corporate clients against property loss, liability, and other operational risks. Travelers is known for combining underwriting, claims management and risk control services to help clients prevent losses and recover when incidents occur.

On the commercial side, Travelers writes primary and specialty coverages including property, general liability, commercial auto, workers' compensation, professional and management liability, surety and inland marine.

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