Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS Shares Acquired by Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.

Key Points

• Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited by 2.6% in Q2, owning approximately 0.20% of the company valued at $16.5 million.
• Axis Capital reported $3.29 EPS in its latest earnings, surpassing the expected $2.88, and its revenue grew 12.6% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 1.9% with a payout ratio of 16.92%.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its holdings in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 2.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 158,936 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,957 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. owned approximately 0.20% of Axis Capital worth $16,501,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Axis Capital during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Axis Capital by 1,542.9% during the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 575 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in Axis Capital by 34.0% during the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $106,000 after buying an additional 259 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in Axis Capital by 36.9% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,184 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $119,000 after buying an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in Axis Capital by 34.3% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,628 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $163,000 after buying an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Axis Capital Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:AXS opened at $94.53 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market capitalization of $7.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.73. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 52-week low of $77.21 and a 52-week high of $107.19. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $96.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.01.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.93 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $119.00 price target (up previously from $115.00) on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Axis Capital from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b+)" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Axis Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Axis Capital currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.43.

Insider Activity at Axis Capital

In other news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 3,500 shares of Axis Capital stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.67, for a total value of $345,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 47,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,666,597.65. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel J. Draper sold 4,305 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.57, for a total value of $420,038.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 16,269 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,587,366.33. The trade was a 20.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,205 shares of company stock valued at $1,188,048 over the last ninety days. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Axis Capital 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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