Equity Investment Corp Purchases New Holdings in The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

Key Points

• Equity Investment Corp acquired 331,603 Travelers shares worth approximately $109.5 million, making TRV about 2.1% of its portfolio and its 24th-largest holding. Institutional investors collectively own 82.45% of the stock.
• Travelers reported quarterly EPS of $10.04, well above the $5.41 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $12.15 billion. Shares opened at $367.96, up 0.9%, and the company announced a $1.25 quarterly dividend.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $354.26. Several executives sold shares recently, including two EVP transactions totaling more than $7.8 million.

Equity Investment Corp acquired a new position in shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 331,603 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $109,469,000. Travelers Companies makes up approximately 2.1% of Equity Investment Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Equity Investment Corp owned 0.16% of Travelers Companies at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Berman McAleer LLC lifted its position in Travelers Companies by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Berman McAleer LLC now owns 894 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Willner & Heller LLC grew its holdings in shares of Travelers Companies by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Willner & Heller LLC now owns 1,206 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $398,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Spinnaker Trust grew its holdings in shares of Travelers Companies by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Spinnaker Trust now owns 1,938 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $565,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Cim LLC increased its stake in shares of Travelers Companies by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Cim LLC now owns 8,145 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,363,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avalon Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Travelers Companies by 0.4% during the first quarter. Avalon Trust Co now owns 8,784 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,562,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.45% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Travelers Companies

In other news, EVP Mojgan M. Lefebvre sold 16,313 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.38, for a total value of $6,009,382.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,213 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,393,884.94. This represents a 63.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Donnay Rowland sold 5,000 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $371.69, for a total transaction of $1,858,450.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 10,479 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,894,939.51. This trade represents a 32.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 62,667 shares of company stock valued at $22,688,329 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.39% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TRV has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $314.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Travelers Companies from $295.00 to $318.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Travelers Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $350.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, July 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $356.00 price target (up from $342.00) on shares of Travelers Companies in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets downgraded Travelers Companies from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $314.00 to $379.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $354.26.

Travelers Companies Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of TRV stock opened at $367.96 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.45. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $252.26 and a 1 year high of $398.70. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $348.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $316.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Get Free Report) last posted 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.26 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.51 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 33.82 EPS for the current year.

Travelers Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 10th. Travelers Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.39%.

Travelers Companies Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding TRV? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source