Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. Increases Stake in RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI)

Key Points

• Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. increased its stake in RLI Corp. by 197.7%, owning 17,003 shares valued at approximately $1.37 million after purchasing an additional 11,291 shares in Q1.
• RLI Corp. declared a quarterly dividend of $0.16, raising its annualized dividend to $0.64 with a yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio of 18.34%.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed ratings on RLI, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price of $78.60, showing recent downgrades from some firms.

Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Free Report) by 197.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,003 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,291 shares during the period. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc.'s holdings in RLI were worth $1,372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of RLI by 89.7% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 9,323 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $749,000 after purchasing an additional 4,409 shares during the period. Commerce Bank lifted its holdings in shares of RLI by 96.4% during the first quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 8,363 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $672,000 after purchasing an additional 4,104 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in RLI by 210.5% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,816 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 2,587 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in RLI by 96.4% in the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 255,554 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $20,529,000 after buying an additional 125,459 shares during the period. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new position in RLI during the 1st quarter worth approximately $132,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.89% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on RLI. Compass Point downgraded shares of RLI from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of RLI in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on RLI from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded RLI from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $78.60.

RLI Price Performance

NYSE:RLI opened at $65.80 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. RLI Corp. has a 52 week low of $65.14 and a 52 week high of $91.14. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $71.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.04 billion, a PE ratio of 18.85 and a beta of 0.66.

RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $562.28 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $445.55 million. RLI had a return on equity of 15.82% and a net margin of 17.81%. RLI's revenue for the quarter was up 20.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that RLI Corp. will post 3.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This is a boost from RLI's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. RLI's payout ratio is presently 18.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Jennifer L. Klobnak acquired 3,000 shares of RLI stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $69.15 per share, for a total transaction of $207,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 98,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,807,817.50. The trade was a 3.14% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 2.16% of the company's stock.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding RLI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.