Rit Capital Partners PLC Purchases New Stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

Key Points

• Rit Capital Partners PLC disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in Travelers Companies, buying 136,000 shares worth about $39.45 million. The position makes TRV its 4th-largest holding and about 8.8% of its portfolio.
• Institutional interest in Travelers remains strong, with several hedge funds and asset managers increasing or initiating positions; overall, 82.45% of the stock is owned by institutions. However, some insiders sold shares recently, including Vice Chairman William H. Heyman and EVP Diane Kurtzman.
• Travelers reported strong quarterly earnings, posting $7.71 EPS versus estimates of $6.80 and raising its quarterly dividend to $1.25 per share. Analysts currently have a consensus Hold rating with a $309.13 price target.

Rit Capital Partners PLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 136,000 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $39,450,000. Travelers Companies makes up approximately 8.8% of Rit Capital Partners PLC's portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Rit Capital Partners PLC owned about 0.06% of Travelers Companies at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in TRV. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 102.0% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 908,559 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $263,537,000 after acquiring an additional 458,746 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Travelers Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $99,680,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,785,288 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $496,872,000 after acquiring an additional 331,170 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 258.5% during the 2nd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 372,513 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $99,662,000 after acquiring an additional 268,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new stake in shares of Travelers Companies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $75,303,000. 82.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 1,557 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.64, for a total value of $483,666.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 259,590 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $80,639,037.60. This represents a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Diane Kurtzman sold 2,867 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.45, for a total value of $869,991.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,298 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,607,678.10. The trade was a 35.11% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 27,573 shares of company stock valued at $8,427,646. Company insiders own 1.39% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TRV has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Roth Mkm restated a "buy" rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Travelers Companies from $297.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on Travelers Companies from $316.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Travelers Companies from $312.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Travelers Companies has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $309.13.

Travelers Companies Price Performance

Shares of TRV opened at $306.67 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $65.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.12, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $299.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $292.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $249.19 and a 12 month high of $313.12.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $7.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.80 by $0.91. Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 24.06% and a net margin of 15.54%.The firm had revenue of $11.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.91 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 28.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 10th. This is a positive change from Travelers Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Travelers Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.09%.

Travelers Companies Profile

The Travelers Companies, Inc NYSE: TRV is a leading provider of property and casualty insurance products and services. The company underwrites a broad range of commercial and personal insurance lines, offering coverage designed to protect individuals, small and midsize businesses, and large corporate clients against property loss, liability, and other operational risks. Travelers is known for combining underwriting, claims management and risk control services to help clients prevent losses and recover when incidents occur.

On the commercial side, Travelers writes primary and specialty coverages including property, general liability, commercial auto, workers' compensation, professional and management liability, surety and inland marine.

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