Nuveen LLC Acquires New Shares in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV)

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in The Travelers Companies (NYSE: TRV) by purchasing 1,114,555 shares valued at approximately $294.75 million, representing about 0.49% ownership.
• Travelers Companies reported a quarterly EPS of $6.51, exceeding the consensus estimate of $3.52, alongside a revenue of $11.54 billion for the quarter.
• The company declared a $1.10 quarterly dividend, with a dividend yield of 1.7%, to be paid on September 30th to stockholders of record on September 10th.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,114,555 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $294,755,000. Nuveen LLC owned approximately 0.49% of Travelers Companies as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in Travelers Companies by 700.0% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Travelers Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in Travelers Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new stake in Travelers Companies in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.45% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Travelers Companies news, CFO Daniel S. Frey sold 20,286 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $273.48, for a total transaction of $5,547,815.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 26,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,365,363.36. This trade represents a 42.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Avrohom J. Kess sold 23,434 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.93, for a total value of $6,419,275.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 48,387 shares in the company, valued at $13,254,650.91. This represents a 32.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 175,374 shares of company stock valued at $47,929,912 over the last 90 days. 1.46% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Travelers Companies Price Performance

Travelers Companies stock traded down $0.64 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $268.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,505,282 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,337,706. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $214.61 and a 12 month high of $277.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $262.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $259.05. The company has a market capitalization of $60.48 billion, a PE ratio of 11.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.51.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The insurance provider reported $6.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.52 by $2.99. The company had revenue of $11.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.02 billion. Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 18.68% and a net margin of 10.97%. The firm's revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.51 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 17.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be given a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 10th. Travelers Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on TRV. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Travelers Companies from $288.00 to $296.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Travelers Companies to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $275.00 to $284.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $269.00 price objective on shares of Travelers Companies and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Travelers Companies from $304.00 to $316.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $284.56.

About Travelers Companies

The Travelers Companies, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides a range of commercial and personal property, and casualty insurance products and services to businesses, government units, associations, and individuals in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance, and Personal Insurance.