Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Buys 5,056 Shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 16.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 35,678 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,056 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's holdings in Axis Capital were worth $3,576,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Axis Capital by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 133,675 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $11,846,000 after buying an additional 4,303 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Axis Capital during the 4th quarter valued at about $246,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in shares of Axis Capital during the 4th quarter valued at about $319,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 305,929 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $27,111,000 after purchasing an additional 24,891 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Axis Capital by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 8,558 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $758,000 after purchasing an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Axis Capital Stock Down 3.8%

AXS stock traded down $3.86 on Wednesday, reaching $98.58. 439,796 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 619,658. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a one year low of $68.49 and a one year high of $107.19. The company has a market cap of $7.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $101.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.53. The company had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.83 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 19.01%. Axis Capital's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.07 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. Axis Capital's payout ratio is currently 17.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Axis Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $107.75.

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.