Strs Ohio Sells 4,155 Shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

Key Points

• Strs Ohio cut its stake in The Travelers Companies by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 4,155 shares and holding 60,138 shares valued at about $17.44 million.
• Company insiders have been net sellers, offloading 103,706 shares (~$30.99 million) in the last three months, including EVP Michael Klein’s sale of 10,000 shares at $303.77; insiders now own 1.39% of the stock.
• Travelers beat quarterly estimates with $7.71 EPS, raised its quarterly dividend to $1.25 (from $1.10), and the board authorized a $5.0 billion share buyback.

Strs Ohio lessened its holdings in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 60,138 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 4,155 shares during the period. Strs Ohio's holdings in Travelers Companies were worth $17,444,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Travelers Companies by 1,820.0% during the 2nd quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Travelers Companies by 134.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Travelers Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. eCIO Inc. bought a new stake in Travelers Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Optima Capital LLC bought a new stake in Travelers Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors own 82.45% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on TRV shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $340.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $312.00 to $331.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $259.00 to $257.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Travelers Companies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $304.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $315.00 to $304.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Travelers Companies presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $309.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael Frederick Klein sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.77, for a total transaction of $3,037,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,125 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,707,621.25. The trade was a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 1,557 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.64, for a total transaction of $483,666.48. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 259,590 shares of the company's stock, valued at $80,639,037.60. This represents a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 103,706 shares of company stock valued at $30,991,761. Insiders own 1.39% of the company's stock.

Travelers Companies Trading Up 0.1%

Travelers Companies stock opened at $304.99 on Monday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $300.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $289.72. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $249.19 and a 1 year high of $313.12. 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 stock has a market cap of $64.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.07, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.50.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $7.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.80 by $0.91. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 24.06%. The firm had revenue of $11.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.11 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.91 earnings per share. Travelers Companies's revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 28.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This is an increase from Travelers Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 10th. Travelers Companies's payout ratio is presently 13.09%.

Travelers Companies announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, January 21st that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the insurance provider to purchase up to 8.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Travelers Companies

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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