JPMorgan Chase & Co. Buys 191,020 Shares of RLI Corp. $RLI

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in RLI by 15.5%, buying 191,020 shares to own 1,422,596 shares (about 1.55% of the company) valued at roughly $92.8 million.
• RLI beat expectations for the latest quarter with EPS $0.94 vs. $0.76 consensus and revenue of $465.7 million versus $447.5 million, reporting a 21.4% net margin and 18.7% return on equity.
• Company insiders showed conviction with CEO Craig Kliethermes and COO Jennifer Klobnak buying 5,000 and 2,000 shares respectively on Jan. 23, bringing insider ownership to 2.16%.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Free Report) by 15.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,422,596 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 191,020 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 1.55% of RLI worth $92,782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of RLI. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of RLI by 115.1% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 56,386 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $4,529,000 after purchasing an additional 30,170 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in RLI by 110.8% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 185,504 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $14,902,000 after buying an additional 97,501 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in RLI by 472.3% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 29,177 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,344,000 after buying an additional 24,079 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of RLI by 46.7% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,571 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $258,000 after buying an additional 1,137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey raised its stake in shares of RLI by 3.9% in the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 31,534 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,277,000 after acquiring an additional 1,191 shares during the last quarter. 77.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Jennifer L. Klobnak acquired 2,000 shares of RLI stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $57.99 per share, with a total value of $115,980.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer directly owned 100,318 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,817,440.82. The trade was a 2.03% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Craig W. Kliethermes acquired 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $57.45 per share, with a total value of $287,250.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 143,990 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,272,225.50. This trade represents a 3.60% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 2.16% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised RLI from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $52.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Truist Financial set a $58.00 target price on RLI in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of RLI from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $59.00 price objective on shares of RLI and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of RLI from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $65.20.

RLI Price Performance

RLI opened at $61.26 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $60.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $62.49. RLI Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $55.80 and a fifty-two week high of $81.79. The company has a market cap of $5.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.05 and a beta of 0.50.

RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $465.69 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $447.53 million. RLI had a net margin of 21.43% and a return on equity of 18.67%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.41 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that RLI Corp. will post 3.08 EPS for the current year.

RLI Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. RLI's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.68%.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corporation NYSE: RLI is a specialty property and casualty insurance company focused on underwriting niche risks for businesses and individuals. Headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, the company operates through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering customized coverage solutions. RLI's approach emphasizes disciplined underwriting, targeted product development and strong customer service to maintain profitability and long-term growth.

Founded in 1965 as Replacement Lens, Inc, RLI initially provided insurance for contact lens manufacturers before shifting its focus to specialty insurance in the 1980s.

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