Cannell & Spears LLC Buys 17,925 Shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

Key Points

• Cannell & Spears LLC dramatically increased its Travelers stake in Q1, buying 17,925 shares and lifting holdings to 18,821 shares valued at about $5.49 million.
• Travelers reported a strong quarterly earnings beat, posting $10.04 EPS versus $5.41 expected and revenue of $12.15 billion, which helped push the stock higher and near its 52-week high.
• Sentiment remains mixed: several analysts have hold or sell-type ratings despite higher price targets, while insiders recently sold shares and the company also issued $750 million in senior notes with AM Best assigning a stable issue credit rating.

Cannell & Spears LLC raised its stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) by 2,000.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,821 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 17,925 shares during the quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC's holdings in Travelers Companies were worth $5,492,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of TRV. Norges Bank bought a new position in Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $723,339,000. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Travelers Companies by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,000,457 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $4,641,093,000 after buying an additional 486,861 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 102.0% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 908,559 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $263,537,000 after buying an additional 458,746 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Travelers Companies during the 3rd quarter worth $99,680,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Travelers Companies by 22.8% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,785,288 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $496,872,000 after acquiring an additional 331,170 shares during the period. 82.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Travelers Companies news, insider Avrohom J. Kess sold 6,735 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.78, for a total value of $2,079,633.30. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 48,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,049,010.86. The trade was a 12.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 1,557 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.64, for a total value of $483,666.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 259,590 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,639,037.60. This represents a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 18,292 shares of company stock worth $5,639,800 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.39% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Travelers Companies

Here are the key news stories impacting Travelers Companies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage remained constructive, with Morgan Stanley and other firms highlighting potential upside, while a recent Zacks note said Travelers’ shares hit a 52-week high and questioned whether the run can continue. Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Travelers Companies NYSE: TRV Stock The Travelers Companies, Inc. (TRV) Hit a 52 Week High, Can the Run Continue?
• Positive Sentiment: AM Best assigned an “a+” issue credit rating with a stable outlook to Travelers’ new $750 million senior unsecured notes, signaling confidence in the company’s credit quality and access to capital. AM Best Assigns Issue Credit Rating to The Travelers Companies, Inc. New Senior Unsecured Notes
• Positive Sentiment: Travelers priced $750 million of 4.95% senior notes due 2031, which adds funding for general corporate purposes and appears manageable given the company’s strong balance sheet. Travelers Companies Prices $750 Million Senior Notes Offering
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho raised its price target to $343 from $324 but kept a neutral rating, suggesting the stock may have already moved ahead of near-term fundamentals. Mizuho price target update
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that several top Travelers executives sold company stock could weigh on sentiment, even if the transactions were routine. Top Travelers Executives Quietly Unload Millions in Company Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Deutsche Bank and UBS both reiterated hold-type views, reinforcing that some analysts see limited upside after the recent rally. Deutsche Bank Sticks to Its Hold Rating for Travelers Companies (TRV) UBS Releases a Hold Rating on Travelers Companies (TRV)

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen lowered shares of Travelers Companies from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $297.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Travelers Companies from $295.00 to $334.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $295.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $356.00 target price (up from $342.00) on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Travelers Companies from $283.00 to $307.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $354.26.

Travelers Companies Trading Up 2.9%

NYSE TRV opened at $387.42 on Friday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $322.06 and its 200 day moving average is $304.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.80 billion, a PE ratio of 10.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $252.26 and a twelve month high of $389.11.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The insurance provider reported $10.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.41 by $4.63. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 16.95% and a return on equity of 25.41%. The company had revenue of $12.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.26 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.51 EPS. Travelers Companies's quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 32.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 10th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 10th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Travelers Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.39%.

About Travelers Companies

The Travelers Companies, Inc NYSE: TRV is a leading provider of property and casualty insurance products and services. The company underwrites a broad range of commercial and personal insurance lines, offering coverage designed to protect individuals, small and midsize businesses, and large corporate clients against property loss, liability, and other operational risks. Travelers is known for combining underwriting, claims management and risk control services to help clients prevent losses and recover when incidents occur.

On the commercial side, Travelers writes primary and specialty coverages including property, general liability, commercial auto, workers' compensation, professional and management liability, surety and inland marine.

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