Danske Bank A S Grows Stock Holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Key Points

• Danske Bank A/S increased its position in Axis Capital by 34.1% during Q4 to 125,162 shares (about 0.16% of the company) valued at roughly $13.4 million, while institutional investors now own about 93.44% of the stock.
• Axis Capital reported quarterly EPS of $3.42 (beating estimates) with revenue of $1.64 billion (+8% YoY but slightly below estimates); the company has a market cap of $7.38 billion, a P/E of 7.46 and pays a $0.44 quarterly dividend (≈1.8% yield).

Danske Bank A S raised its position in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 34.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 125,162 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 31,830 shares during the quarter. Danske Bank A S owned approximately 0.16% of Axis Capital worth $13,404,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Axis Capital in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Axis Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Axis Capital in the third quarter valued at about $43,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Axis Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Axis Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Axis Capital Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AXS opened at $100.09 on Monday. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1 year low of $88.07 and a 1 year high of $110.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The company's 50-day moving average is $101.51 and its 200 day moving average is $101.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.54.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.09. Axis Capital had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 18.12%. The business had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.17 earnings per share. Axis Capital's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 13.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Axis Capital's payout ratio is presently 13.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AXS shares. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Axis Capital from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $121.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Axis Capital presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $122.80.

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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