Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Has $2.18 Million Stock Position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 197.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,542 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 16,298 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $2,175,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in AXIS Capital by 53.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 48,964 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $3,898,000 after purchasing an additional 17,082 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in AXIS Capital by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 6,549 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $580,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC boosted its stake in AXIS Capital by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 3,893 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $345,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in AXIS Capital by 38.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,679 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $149,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its stake in AXIS Capital by 74.6% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,668 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 1,567 shares in the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on AXS shares. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group increased their price target on AXIS Capital from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen raised AXIS Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 12th. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on AXIS Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AXIS Capital presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $107.75.

Insider Transactions at AXIS Capital

In other news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total value of $199,999,959.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,404,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at $224,786,435.50. This trade represents a 47.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AXIS Capital Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of AXIS Capital stock traded up $1.35 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $103.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 640,228 shares, compared to its average volume of 594,341. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.41, a PEG ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $97.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $93.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 1-year low of $68.02 and a 1-year high of $105.16.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.53. The business had revenue of $1.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.83 billion. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 18.16%. AXIS Capital's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.07 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.46%.

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.