LSV Asset Management Purchases 37,000 Shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management increased its stake in Axis Capital by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, buying 37,000 more shares and bringing its holdings to 709,900 shares valued at about $76 million.
• Axis Capital reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $3.42 per share, though revenue of $1.64 billion came in below analyst expectations; the company also posted 8% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The insurer declared a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $122.10.

LSV Asset Management raised its position in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 5.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 709,900 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 37,000 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned about 0.92% of Axis Capital worth $76,023,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Axis Capital by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,954,373 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $762,029,000 after acquiring an additional 43,901 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Axis Capital by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,318,914 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $317,945,000 after acquiring an additional 74,567 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Axis Capital by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,631,198 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $170,069,000 after acquiring an additional 15,755 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in Axis Capital by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,222,932 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $117,157,000 after acquiring an additional 6,571 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in Axis Capital by 30.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 970,411 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $92,965,000 after acquiring an additional 225,569 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 2,542 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.69, for a total value of $250,869.98. Following the sale, the director owned 46,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,573,985.43. This represents a 5.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Axis Capital Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of Axis Capital stock opened at $99.85 on Friday. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $88.07 and a 12-month high of $110.34. The stock has a market cap of $7.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business's 50 day moving average is $100.32 and its 200-day moving average is $102.01.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.09. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 18.12% and a net margin of 16.00%.The business had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.72 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.17 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 13.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio is 13.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on AXS. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Axis Capital from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Weiss Ratings cut Axis Capital from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Axis Capital from $123.00 to $119.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Axis Capital from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Axis Capital presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $122.10.

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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