Panagora Asset Management Inc. Purchases 11,017 Shares of RLI Corp. $RLI

Key Points

• Panagora Asset Management Inc. significantly increased its stake in RLI Corp. by 100.2%, acquiring an additional 11,017 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total holdings to 22,015 shares valued at approximately $1.77 million.
• RLI Corp. recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.16, set to be paid on September 19th, with a dividend yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio of 18.34%.
• In terms of stock performance, RLI has a current market cap of $6.18 billion and reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.84, exceeding analyst expectations by $0.09.

Panagora Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Free Report) by 100.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,015 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,017 shares during the quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in RLI were worth $1,768,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of RLI by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 372 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in RLI by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 396 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in RLI by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 406 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in RLI by 88.5% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 477 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in RLI by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Compass Wealth Management LLC now owns 480 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. 77.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

RLI Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE RLI traded up $0.98 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $68.06. The stock had a trading volume of 157,331 shares, compared to its average volume of 512,429. The firm has a market cap of $6.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.52 and a beta of 0.65. RLI Corp. has a twelve month low of $65.14 and a twelve month high of $91.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.35. The company's 50 day moving average price is $68.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.95.

RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.09. RLI had a net margin of 17.81% and a return on equity of 15.82%. The firm had revenue of $562.28 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $445.55 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.72 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 20.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that RLI Corp. will post 3.08 EPS for the current year.

RLI Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. RLI's payout ratio is presently 18.34%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Jennifer L. Klobnak bought 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $69.15 per share, for a total transaction of $207,450.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 98,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,807,817.50. The trade was a 3.14% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised shares of RLI from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $78.60.

About RLI

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.