BlackRock Inc. Purchases Shares of 1,649,720 CNA Financial Corporation $CNA

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 1,649,720 CNA Financial shares worth approximately $80.2 million, giving it a 0.61% stake. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 98.45% of the company.
• CNA Financial reported quarterly EPS of $1.19, exceeding the $1.08 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $3.83 billion. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $4.19.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share, equivalent to $1.92 annually and a 3.9% yield; CNA shares recently traded near $49.27, down 0.1%.

BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of CNA Financial Corporation (NYSE:CNA - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,649,720 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $80,193,000. BlackRock Inc. owned 0.61% of CNA Financial at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CNA. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. bought a new stake in shares of CNA Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in CNA Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $53,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in CNA Financial during the second quarter worth $55,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in CNA Financial by 142.7% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,223 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 719 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 28.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,435 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. 98.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CNA Financial Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of CNA stock opened at $49.27 on Monday. CNA Financial Corporation has a 52-week low of $41.53 and a 52-week high of $55.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.79. The company has a market capitalization of $13.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.83, a PEG ratio of 6.58 and a beta of 0.28.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The insurance provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $3.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.97 billion. CNA Financial had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 11.34%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.23 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that CNA Financial Corporation will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. CNA Financial's payout ratio is currently 42.20%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CNA Financial news, EVP Mark Steven James sold 8,273 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.15, for a total value of $439,709.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 26,446 shares in the company, valued at $1,405,604.90. This represents a 23.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 22,656 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.09, for a total value of $1,202,807.04. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 68,032 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,611,818.88. This represents a 24.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on CNA shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of CNA Financial from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Zacks Research upgraded CNA Financial from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

About CNA Financial

CNA Financial Corporation is a leading U.S.-based commercial property and casualty insurance company offering a broad portfolio of risk management and insurance solutions. The company underwrites coverage for businesses of all sizes across a variety of industry sectors, including manufacturing, healthcare, energy, technology, construction and real estate. In addition to core property and casualty insurance, CNA delivers specialized products such as surety bonds, professional liability, environmental liability and commercial auto coverage.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, CNA traces its origins to the founding of Continental Casualty Company in 1897.

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