Loews Corporation (NYSE:L) Shares Sold by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV trimmed its stake in shares of Loews Corporation (NYSE:L - Free Report) by 14.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,563 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 6,967 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in Loews were worth $3,728,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Loews during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew its position in shares of Loews by 387.6% in the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 434 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Loews in the first quarter valued at approximately $40,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Loews by 80.1% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 470 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in shares of Loews during the 4th quarter worth approximately $56,000. 58.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded Loews from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th.

Loews Price Performance

Shares of L traded up $1.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $92.39. 500,770 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 733,268. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.37 billion, a PE ratio of 15.17 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $88.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $86.56. Loews Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $73.85 and a fifty-two week high of $92.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Loews (NYSE:L - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $4.49 billion for the quarter. Loews had a net margin of 7.47% and a return on equity of 7.43%.

Loews Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th were given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 28th. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.27%. Loews's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Loews news, SVP Richard Waldo Scott sold 9,019 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.92, for a total value of $792,950.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 33,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,980,575.92. The trade was a 21.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 19.00% of the company's stock.

Loews Profile

Loews Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance in the United States and internationally. The company offers specialty insurance products, such as management and professional liability, and other coverage products; surety and fidelity bonds; property insurance products that include standard and excess property, marine and boiler, and machinery coverages; and casualty insurance products, such as workers' compensation, general and product liability, and commercial auto, surplus, and umbrella coverages.