Associated Banc Corp Invests $319,000 in RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI)

Key Points

• Associated Banc Corp has purchased 3,975 shares of RLI Corp. for approximately $319,000, marking a new stake in the insurance provider during the 1st quarter.
• RLI Corp. recently reported a 20.0% year-over-year revenue increase with earnings of $0.84 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.75.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share, increased from $0.15, representing an annualized yield of 1.0%.

Associated Banc Corp bought a new stake in RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,975 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $319,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in RLI by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 372 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of RLI by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 406 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of RLI by 88.5% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 477 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the period. Compass Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in RLI by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Compass Wealth Management LLC now owns 480 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in RLI by 56.8% in the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 530 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. 77.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of RLI in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on RLI from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of RLI from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Compass Point lowered shares of RLI from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, RLI currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $78.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at RLI

In related news, COO Jennifer L. Klobnak purchased 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $69.15 per share, for a total transaction of $207,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 98,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,807,817.50. This trade represents a 3.14% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 2.16% of the company's stock.

RLI Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of RLI stock traded down $1.37 during trading on Thursday, reaching $66.65. The stock had a trading volume of 411,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 848,406. The company has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.10 and a beta of 0.66. RLI Corp. has a 52 week low of $65.14 and a 52 week high of $91.14. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $71.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $74.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

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

RLI Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. This is a positive change from RLI's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. RLI's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.34%.

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.