JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 129,683 Shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase cut its stake in Axis Capital by 47.2%, selling 129,683 shares and leaving it with 144,904 shares (about $13.9M or 0.19% of the company) after the 3Q 13F filing.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view—Axis has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with a $124 average target (individual targets range roughly $120–$141) while institutional ownership is high at 93.44%, with several large funds increasing positions.
• Axis recently beat quarterly estimates (EPS $3.25 vs. $2.97) and reported revenue up 17.8% year-over-year, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44 (annualized $1.76, ~1.7% yield).

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced its holdings in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 47.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 144,904 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 129,683 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.19% of Axis Capital worth $13,884,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AXS. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 12.9% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,716,201 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $383,698,000 after purchasing an additional 425,790 shares in the last quarter. Altrinsic Global Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Axis Capital by 47.7% in the second quarter. Altrinsic Global Advisors LLC now owns 1,817,204 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $188,662,000 after buying an additional 586,576 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Axis Capital by 1.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,631,198 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $170,069,000 after buying an additional 15,755 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,222,932 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $117,157,000 after buying an additional 6,571 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB grew its position in shares of Axis Capital by 23.9% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,194,754 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $114,457,000 after buying an additional 230,494 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AXS shares. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Mizuho set a $141.00 target price on Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $121.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Axis Capital presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $124.00.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

NYSE AXS opened at $103.95 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $103.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $100.16. The firm has a market cap of $7.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.39, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.67. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1 year low of $84.81 and a 1 year high of $110.34.

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

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

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

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.

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