Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Shares Bought by Cerity Partners LLC

Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 62.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,582 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 19,424 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC owned about 0.06% of Axis Capital worth $5,070,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Axis Capital in the first quarter valued at $33,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Axis Capital in the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Axis Capital by 73.8% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Axis Capital by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 900 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Axis Capital in the fourth quarter valued at $88,000. 93.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Axis Capital Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Axis Capital stock traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $97.09. 324,207 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 628,064. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a twelve month low of $70.16 and a twelve month high of $107.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $101.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.53. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 19.01%. The firm had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.07 earnings per share. Axis Capital's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Axis Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $108.25.

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.