Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Sells 266,504 Shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 66.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 132,727 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 266,504 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Axis Capital worth $13,305,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in Axis Capital in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in Axis Capital by 1,542.9% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 575 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Axis Capital by 21.6% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 900 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Axis Capital in the 4th quarter valued at $88,000. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in Axis Capital by 36.9% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,184 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AXS shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Axis Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Axis Capital from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen raised Axis Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. Finally, Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Axis Capital currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $108.25.

Axis Capital Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE AXS traded down $1.18 on Thursday, reaching $96.17. The company had a trading volume of 156,790 shares, compared to its average volume of 703,608. The stock's 50 day moving average is $101.03 and its 200-day moving average is $96.16. The stock has a market cap of $7.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.54, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 52 week low of $70.16 and a 52 week high of $107.19.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.17 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.53. The business had revenue of $1.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.83 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 14.54%. The firm's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.07 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.46%.

About Axis Capital

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.