Bessemer Group Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Loews Corporation $L

Key Points

• Bessemer Group Inc. cut its Loews stake by 74.5% in the first quarter, selling 29,653 shares and leaving it with 10,129 shares worth about $1.08 million.
• Insider activity showed Director Dino Robusto bought 5,000 shares at $104.74 each, increasing his ownership by about 95.5%.
• Loews shares were trading around $115.58, near the upper end of their 52-week range, after the company reported $1.63 EPS and $4.55 billion in quarterly revenue; Weiss Ratings also trimmed its view slightly from “buy (a-)” to “buy (b+)”.

Bessemer Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of Loews Corporation (NYSE:L - Free Report) by 74.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,129 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 29,653 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in Loews were worth $1,081,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Loews by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 369,994 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $38,724,000 after acquiring an additional 39,968 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its stake in shares of Loews by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 811,194 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $85,427,000 after purchasing an additional 37,327 shares during the period. Accurate Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Loews in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,095,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Loews by 294.5% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 148,560 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $15,645,000 after purchasing an additional 110,901 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Loews by 5,379.4% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 165,807 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $17,461,000 after purchasing an additional 162,781 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.33% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dino Robusto bought 5,000 shares of Loews stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $104.74 per share, with a total value of $523,700.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 10,235 shares in the company, valued at $1,072,013.90. This represents a 95.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 19.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Loews from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy".

Loews Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of L stock opened at $115.58 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.69 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Loews Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $89.32 and a fifty-two week high of $119.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $108.58.

Loews (NYSE:L - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter. Loews had a net margin of 8.83% and a return on equity of 8.51%. The business had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter.

Loews Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were paid a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 27th. Loews's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 3.18%.

Loews Profile

Loews Corporation NYSE: L is a diversified holding company that owns and operates businesses across insurance, hospitality, energy-related operations and other industrial and investment activities. The company holds controlling and significant minority interests in subsidiaries that run as standalone businesses, with corporate oversight focused on capital allocation, risk management and long-term value creation for shareholders.

One of Loews' principal businesses is insurance, conducted through CNA Financial, a commercial property and casualty insurer that underwrites a range of business insurance products for corporate and institutional clients.

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