Donald Smith & CO. Inc. Has $43.53 Million Stake in Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE)

Key Points

• Donald Smith & CO. Inc. increased its stake in Universal Insurance Holdings Inc by 6.8% during Q1, owning approximately 6.53% of the company worth $43.53 million.
• Universal Insurance recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16, with an annualized yield of 2.7% and a payout ratio of 27.95%.
• Wall Street analysts have downgraded Universal Insurance from a "strong-buy" to a "buy" rating, indicating a shift in market sentiment.

Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its position in Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE - Free Report) by 6.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,836,718 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 116,199 shares during the quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. owned about 6.53% of Universal Insurance worth $43,530,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,674,545 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $35,266,000 after purchasing an additional 4,480 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,496,224 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $31,510,000 after purchasing an additional 6,250 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 366,877 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,726,000 after purchasing an additional 2,181 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 357,100 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,521,000 after purchasing an additional 33,900 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 325,910 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $6,864,000 after purchasing an additional 11,623 shares during the period. 66.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

Shares of UVE traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $24.40. 13,528 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 216,206. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a twelve month low of $16.50 and a twelve month high of $28.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market cap of $691.01 million, a P/E ratio of 10.66 and a beta of 0.87. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $25.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.72.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The insurance provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $596.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $359.98 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.37% and a net margin of 4.24%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. Universal Insurance's payout ratio is 27.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Universal Insurance from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd.

Insider Transactions at Universal Insurance

In related news, Director Jon Springer sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total value of $811,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 301,835 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,167,655.10. The trade was a 9.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.91, for a total value of $672,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 926,667 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,936,608.97. This trade represents a 2.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 75,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,011,350. 17.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Universal Insurance Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.