Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Cuts Stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. has reduced its holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited by 11.8%, now owning approximately 680,102 shares worth $68.17 million after selling 90,747 shares.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed ratings on Axis Capital, with six analysts giving a "buy" rating and four others rating it as "hold," resulting in a consensus target price of $111.43.
• Axis Capital reported $3.29 EPS for its last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and achieving a year-over-year revenue increase of 12.6%.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 11.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 680,102 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 90,747 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.86% of Axis Capital worth $68,173,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in Axis Capital during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Axis Capital by 1,542.9% during the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 575 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in Axis Capital by 36.9% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,184 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $119,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Axis Capital by 34.3% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,628 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $163,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Axis Capital by 14.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,853 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Axis Capital Stock Up 0.7%

AXS traded up $0.63 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $95.64. 39,900 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 707,606. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.48 billion, a PE ratio of 9.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $98.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $97.11. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1 year low of $74.27 and a 1 year high of $107.19.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.93 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Axis Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.43.

Axis Capital Profile

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.