M&T Bank Corp Grows Stock Position in CNA Financial Corporation $CNA

Key Points

• M&T Bank Corp increased its stake in CNA by 8,100.7% in Q4, adding 478,671 shares to hold 484,580 shares valued at about $23.13 million (0.18% of the company).
• Institutional ownership is very high at 98.45%, with major funds such as AQR, First Trust, UBS and Jacobs Levy notably raising their CNA positions in recent quarters.
• Insider activity and fundamentals: SVP Jeffrey Neuenschwander sold 3,287 shares (a 31.12% cut to his holding), CNA missed Q4 EPS expectations ($1.16 vs. $1.20) and recently paid an annual dividend of $2.00 per share.

M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of CNA Financial Corporation (NYSE:CNA - Free Report) by 8,100.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 484,580 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 478,671 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp owned 0.18% of CNA Financial worth $23,134,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in CNA Financial by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,435,892 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $112,806,000 after acquiring an additional 80,700 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in CNA Financial by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,183,892 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $55,004,000 after acquiring an additional 156,077 shares during the period. CORDA Investment Management LLC. lifted its holdings in CNA Financial by 2.5% during the third quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. now owns 701,884 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $32,610,000 after purchasing an additional 17,046 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its position in CNA Financial by 70.8% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 689,473 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $32,033,000 after purchasing an additional 285,850 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in CNA Financial by 69.5% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 656,067 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $30,481,000 after purchasing an additional 268,917 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.45% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CNA Financial news, SVP Jeffrey John Neuenschwander sold 3,287 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.97, for a total value of $151,103.39. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 7,277 shares in the company, valued at $334,523.69. This represents a 31.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

CNA Financial Stock Up 1.5%

CNA stock opened at $48.76 on Friday. CNA Financial Corporation has a twelve month low of $43.29 and a twelve month high of $50.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.16 billion, a PE ratio of 10.40, a PEG ratio of 6.93 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.82.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The insurance provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.88 billion. CNA Financial had a net margin of 8.53% and a return on equity of 12.23%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that CNA Financial Corporation will post 4.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd were paid a dividend of $2.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a yield of 409.0%. CNA Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.94%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CNA. Zacks Research lowered shares of CNA Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of CNA Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, February 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of CNA Financial from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

CNA Financial Profile

CNA Financial Corporation is a leading U.S.-based commercial property and casualty insurance company offering a broad portfolio of risk management and insurance solutions. The company underwrites coverage for businesses of all sizes across a variety of industry sectors, including manufacturing, healthcare, energy, technology, construction and real estate. In addition to core property and casualty insurance, CNA delivers specialized products such as surety bonds, professional liability, environmental liability and commercial auto coverage.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, CNA traces its origins to the founding of Continental Casualty Company in 1897.

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