Gotham Asset Management LLC Increases Stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management raised its stake in Axis Capital by 15.5% in Q3 to 280,672 shares, worth about $26.9 million (≈0.36% of the company).
• Axis Capital posted a quarter-beating quarter with EPS $3.25 vs. $2.97 expected and revenue $1.73 billion (up 17.8% YoY), and reported an 18.72% ROE and 15.37% net margin.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share (annualized $1.76, yield 1.7%), while analysts hold a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with a $124 average target (price targets range roughly $115–$141).

Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its position in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 15.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 280,672 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 37,741 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.36% of Axis Capital worth $26,888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Axis Capital by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 205,553 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $20,605,000 after purchasing an additional 12,680 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in Axis Capital by 86.2% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 47,277 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,739,000 after purchasing an additional 21,892 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake 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 worth $1,044,000 after buying an additional 3,085 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 33.6% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,924 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $407,000 after buying an additional 987 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AXS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Axis Capital from $121.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Mizuho set a $141.00 price objective on Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Axis Capital from $124.00 to $121.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $119.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Axis Capital has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $124.00.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

AXS opened at $100.92 on Tuesday. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1-year low of $84.81 and a 1-year high of $110.34. The stock has a market cap of $7.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.61. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $102.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The insurance provider reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.33 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 18.72% and a net margin of 15.37%.Axis Capital's revenue was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.38 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Axis Capital's payout ratio is 14.21%.

Axis Capital Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AXS? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - 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.