Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC Boosts Holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Key Points

• Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC significantly increased its stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited by 236.6%, now holding shares valued at $928,000.
• Axis Capital reported earnings of $3.29 per share, exceeding analyst estimates of $2.88, with a revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter.
• Several analysts have mixed ratings for Axis Capital, with new price targets set, including an upgrade by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods to $121.00.

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 236.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,260 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 6,509 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC's holdings in Axis Capital were worth $928,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Axis Capital by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 15,972 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,415,000 after purchasing an additional 578 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 19.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 440,763 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $39,060,000 after buying an additional 71,553 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 40,915 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $3,626,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in Axis Capital by 38.7% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 9,611 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $852,000 after acquiring an additional 2,681 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in Axis Capital by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,070 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $715,000 after buying an additional 905 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

Axis Capital stock traded up $0.71 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $98.14. 653,798 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 696,765. 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 firm's 50-day simple moving average is $97.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $97.78. The firm has a market cap of $7.67 billion, a PE ratio of 9.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.77. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a twelve month low of $74.68 and a twelve month high of $107.19.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $119.00 price target (up previously from $115.00) on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Axis Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price 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. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $111.43.

Insider Transactions at Axis Capital

In other news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 3,500 shares of Axis Capital stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.67, for a total value of $345,345.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 47,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,666,597.65. The trade was a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Daniel J. Draper sold 4,305 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.57, for a total transaction of $420,038.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,269 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,587,366.33. This trade represents a 20.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 12,205 shares of company stock worth $1,188,048. 0.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.