California State Teachers Retirement System Grows Holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Key Points

• California State Teachers Retirement System increased its Axis Capital stake by 25.7% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 92,474 shares valued at approximately $9.38 million. Institutional investors collectively own 93.44% of the company.
• Axis Capital reported quarterly revenue of $1.75 billion, up 7.4% year over year, but earnings of $2.84 per share fell short of analysts’ $3.25 estimate. The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, yielding about 1.7% annually.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $121, compared with the stock’s opening price of $105.82. Several firms recently lowered their targets while retaining buy or outperform ratings.

California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 25.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,474 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 18,934 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.13% of Axis Capital worth $9,378,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Axis Capital by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 17,667 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,792,000 after purchasing an additional 822 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 64.0% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 318,539 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $32,303,000 after purchasing an additional 124,317 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Axis Capital by 18.0% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 161,823 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $16,410,000 after acquiring an additional 24,725 shares in the last quarter. Family Manage LLC boosted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 22.1% during the first quarter. Family Manage LLC now owns 6,190 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $628,000 after purchasing an additional 1,121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Axis Capital by 23.4% in the 1st quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 3,302 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $335,000 after buying an additional 626 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Axis Capital Stock Up 0.5%

AXS stock opened at $105.82 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.52, a P/E/G ratio of 4.39 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.64. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1-year low of $88.07 and a 1-year high of $119.99. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $106.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $103.25.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The insurance provider reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.25 by ($0.41). Axis Capital had a net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 17.00%. The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.74 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.29 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 12.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.50%.

Insider Activity at Axis Capital

In other news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 2,542 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.69, for a total transaction of $250,869.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 46,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,573,985.43. The trade was a 5.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $131.00 to $126.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Axis Capital from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research note on Thursday. Capital One Financial set a $108.00 price objective on Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Axis Capital from $134.00 to $126.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their target price on Axis Capital from $142.00 to $130.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Axis Capital presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $121.00.

About Axis Capital

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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