Sit Investment Associates Inc. Lowers Stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Key Points

• Sit Investment Associates Inc. has decreased its stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited by 6.8%, now owning approximately 108,215 shares, valued at $10.8 million.
• Axis Capital reported earnings of $3.29 per share, exceeding estimates, while its revenue for the quarter was $1.63 billion, slightly below analyst expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, yielding 1.8%, with a payout ratio of 16.92%.

Sit Investment Associates Inc. decreased its holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 6.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,215 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 7,840 shares during the period. Sit Investment Associates Inc. owned about 0.14% of Axis Capital worth $10,847,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 2.2% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $671,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Axis Capital by 2.0% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,231 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $825,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 40,915 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $3,626,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the period. Intrust Bank NA raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 2.9% in the first quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 6,042 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $606,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 7.8% in the first quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 2,736 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Axis Capital Price Performance

NYSE AXS traded down $1.86 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $95.47. 937,248 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 757,831. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 52-week low of $74.27 and a 52-week high of $107.19. The company has a market capitalization of $7.46 billion, a PE ratio of 9.18, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The firm's 50-day moving average is $98.63 and its 200-day moving average is $97.08.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.41. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The company had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.93 EPS. Axis Capital's revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AXS shares. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Axis Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $119.00 price target (up previously from $115.00) on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $111.43.

Axis Capital Company Profile

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism.