National Bank of Canada FI Invests $421,000 in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Key Points

• The National Bank of Canada FI has made a new investment of approximately $421,000 in Axis Capital Holdings, acquiring 4,200 shares in the first quarter.
• Axis Capital's stock has received a majority of positive ratings from analysts, with six buy ratings and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy," along with a target price averaging $111.43.
• In its most recent quarterly earnings report, Axis Capital reported $3.29 earnings per share, surpassing estimates by $0.41, although its revenue of $1.63 billion fell short of expectations.

National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 4,200 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $421,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $671,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 14.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,853 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 314,372 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $31,513,000 after purchasing an additional 8,443 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new position in shares of Axis Capital in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $319,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,628 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on AXS. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Axis Capital from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Axis Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $119.00 price target (up from $115.00) on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.43.

Insider Activity at Axis Capital

In other news, insider Daniel J. Draper sold 2,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.00, for a total transaction of $211,200.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 20,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,975,104. This trade represents a 9.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

AXS traded up $1.1550 during trading on Thursday, reaching $98.7650. 51,249 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 704,877. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.83. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 1 year low of $74.68 and a 1 year high of $107.19. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $98.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.68 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The business's revenue was up 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.93 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.