First Trust Advisors LP Lowers Holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP cut its stake in Axis Capital by 26.7% in the first quarter, selling 277,517 shares and ending with 762,988 shares worth about $77.4 million.
• Several analysts turned more bullish on the insurer, with firms like UBS, Mizuho, Wells Fargo, and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising price targets. The stock now carries a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average target price of $124.45.
• Axis Capital reported stronger-than-expected quarterly EPS of $3.42, though revenue came in below estimates at $1.64 billion. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, yielding about 1.5% annually.

First Trust Advisors LP lowered its holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 26.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 762,988 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 277,517 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 1.03% of Axis Capital worth $77,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AXS. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 12.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 63,457 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $6,361,000 after purchasing an additional 7,023 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 6.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 205,553 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $20,605,000 after buying an additional 12,680 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in shares of Axis Capital by 86.2% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 47,277 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $4,739,000 after purchasing an additional 21,892 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 42.1% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 10,417 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,044,000 after acquiring an additional 3,085 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 33.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,924 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $407,000 after buying an additional 987 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $129.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $137.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $119.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Atlantic Securities set a $122.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Axis Capital from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $124.45.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

Shares of AXS opened at $116.45 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1 year low of $88.07 and a 1 year high of $116.95. The company's fifty day moving average is $105.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.95.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.72 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 18.12% and a net margin of 16.00%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.17 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 13.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. Axis Capital's payout ratio is 13.11%.

Insider Activity at Axis Capital

In other news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 2,542 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.69, for a total transaction of $250,869.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 46,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,573,985.43. This trade represents a 5.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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