SG Americas Securities LLC Boosts Position in Loews Corporation (NYSE:L)

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Loews Corporation (NYSE:L - Free Report) by 589.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,162 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 8,689 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in Loews were worth $934,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in L. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Loews in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Loews in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Loews by 387.6% in the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 434 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Loews during the first quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Loews by 80.1% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 470 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the period. 58.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Loews from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Loews

In other news, SVP Richard Waldo Scott sold 9,019 shares of Loews stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.92, for a total value of $792,950.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 33,901 shares in the company, valued at $2,980,575.92. This trade represents a 21.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 19.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Loews Stock Performance

L traded up $0.71 during trading on Friday, hitting $89.04. 2,110,953 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 728,697. Loews Corporation has a one year low of $73.15 and a one year high of $92.42. The stock's fifty day moving average is $87.68 and its 200 day moving average is $86.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market cap of $18.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.62 and a beta of 0.71.

Loews (NYSE:L - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter. Loews had a net margin of 7.47% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The firm had revenue of $4.49 billion for the quarter.

Loews Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 28th were issued a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.28%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 28th. Loews's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.11%.

Loews Profile

Loews Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance in the United States and internationally. The company offers specialty insurance products, such as management and professional liability, and other coverage products; surety and fidelity bonds; property insurance products that include standard and excess property, marine and boiler, and machinery coverages; and casualty insurance products, such as workers' compensation, general and product liability, and commercial auto, surplus, and umbrella coverages.