LSV Asset Management Grows Position in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management increased its stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited by 5.3%, now owning 693,424 shares valued at approximately $69.5 million.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Axis Capital, with four maintaining a "hold" rating and six assigning a "buy" rating, resulting in a consensus price target of $110.86.
• Axis Capital reported earnings per share of $3.29 for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, although its revenue of $1.63 billion was slightly below estimates.

LSV Asset Management boosted its holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 5.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 693,424 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 35,024 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management owned approximately 0.88% of Axis Capital worth $69,509,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Axis Capital during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $33,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Axis Capital by 1,542.9% in the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 575 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Axis Capital in the fourth quarter worth $88,000. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in Axis Capital by 36.9% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,184 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $119,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Axis Capital by 34.3% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,628 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $163,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AXS shares. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered Axis Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Axis Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Axis Capital has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $111.43.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

NYSE:AXS traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $95.33. The company had a trading volume of 28,594 shares, compared to its average volume of 711,030. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1-year low of $71.80 and a 1-year high of $107.19. The firm has a market cap of $7.45 billion, a PE ratio of 9.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The business's 50 day moving average price is $99.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $96.65.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.41. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 18.77% and a net margin of 14.30%. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. The business's revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.92%.

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.