Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $8.12 Million Stock Holdings in HCI Group, Inc. $HCI

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group reduced its HCI Group stake by 37.8% in the first quarter, selling 31,861 shares and retaining 52,509 shares worth approximately $8.12 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 86.99% of HCI.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $238.33. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage with an “overweight” rating and a $225 target.
• HCI Group reported quarterly EPS of $5.45, exceeding estimates of $5.26, while revenue reached $242.88 million. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, equal to a 0.9% annualized yield.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in HCI Group, Inc. (NYSE:HCI - Free Report) by 37.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 52,509 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 31,861 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.41% of HCI Group worth $8,118,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Freestone Grove Partners LP grew its stake in HCI Group by 353.6% in the fourth quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP now owns 275,108 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $52,735,000 after acquiring an additional 214,464 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of HCI Group during the third quarter worth approximately $19,256,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of HCI Group by 129.1% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 125,399 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $24,038,000 after purchasing an additional 70,662 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in HCI Group by 46.8% in the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 185,430 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $28,222,000 after purchasing an additional 59,134 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in HCI Group by 85.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 127,203 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $24,414,000 after purchasing an additional 58,663 shares during the period. 86.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on HCI shares. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of HCI Group in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $225.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of HCI Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of HCI Group from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded HCI Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $238.33.

HCI Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HCI opened at $178.42 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of 7.83 and a beta of 1.03. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $167.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $162.91. HCI Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $136.37 and a 1-year high of $210.50.

HCI Group (NYSE:HCI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $5.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.26 by $0.19. HCI Group had a net margin of 32.64% and a return on equity of 30.88%. The firm had revenue of $242.88 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $245.09 million. As a group, analysts forecast that HCI Group, Inc. will post 18.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCI Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. HCI Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.02%.

HCI Group Profile

HCI Group, Inc NYSE: HCI is a holding company whose principal business is the underwriting and issuance of property and casualty insurance through its insurance subsidiaries. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, the company focuses primarily on personal-line insurance products, writing homeowners, condominium, renters and mobile home policies. HCI Group also offers wind-only and flood coverage in coastal regions across the state, providing tailored solutions to both coastal and non-coastal communities.

The company distributes its insurance products through a network of independent agents and brokers, leveraging local market expertise to assess risk and deliver personalized service.

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