Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS Stock Position Lifted by Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC

Key Points

• Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its stake in Axis Capital by 107.7%, owning 6,067 shares valued at approximately $591,000 after the purchase.
• Axis Capital recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, yielding 1.9% with a low payout ratio of 16.92%.
• Research analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus rating on Axis Capital, with an average target price of $115.29, reflecting positive growth expectations.

Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 107.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,067 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,146 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC's holdings in Axis Capital were worth $591,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in Axis Capital in the second quarter worth approximately $3,107,000. Cannon Global Investment Management LLC grew its position in Axis Capital by 29.3% in the second quarter. Cannon Global Investment Management LLC now owns 11,900 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,235,000 after acquiring an additional 2,700 shares in the last quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC grew its position in Axis Capital by 6.3% in the second quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC now owns 44,458 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,616,000 after acquiring an additional 2,636 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its position in Axis Capital by 174.6% in the second quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 744,842 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $77,329,000 after acquiring an additional 473,608 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System bought a new stake in Axis Capital in the second quarter worth approximately $126,000. 93.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Axis Capital Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:AXS opened at $91.95 on Wednesday. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a one year low of $77.21 and a one year high of $107.19. The company has a 50 day moving average of $96.42 and a 200-day moving average of $97.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $7.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.73.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.41. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The business had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.93 EPS. Axis Capital's quarterly revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 30th. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio is 16.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Axis Capital

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on AXS. Wells Fargo & Company set a $123.00 price objective on shares of Axis Capital and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b+)" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $104.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Axis Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $115.29.

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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