The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV Shares Sold by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Key Points

• Clearbridge Investments LLC cut its Travelers stake by 11.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 365,072 shares and ending with 2.87 million shares worth about $832.6 million.
• Travelers reported strong quarterly earnings of $7.71 per share, beating estimates by $0.91, while revenue of $11.92 billion also came in ahead of expectations.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.25 per share from $1.10, and the stock also got mixed analyst attention with an average Hold rating and target price around $311.47.

Clearbridge Investments LLC reduced its stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) by 11.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,870,373 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 365,072 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 1.29% of Travelers Companies worth $832,581,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Syon Capital LLC increased its holdings in Travelers Companies by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 4,022 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Travelers Companies by 216.8% in the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 174,715 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $47,350,000 after purchasing an additional 119,558 shares in the last quarter. Valtrion Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Travelers Companies by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Valtrion Capital Management LLC now owns 2,905 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $843,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. DB&C Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Travelers Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $215,000. Finally, 111 Capital grew its stake in shares of Travelers Companies by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. 111 Capital now owns 1,223 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. 82.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Travelers Companies Stock Up 3.3%

Shares of Travelers Companies stock opened at $303.13 on Friday. 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 1-year low of $249.19 and a 1-year high of $313.12. The business has a 50-day moving average of $299.04 and a 200-day moving average of $294.00. The company has a market capitalization of $64.46 billion, a PE ratio of 9.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.48.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $7.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.80 by $0.91. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 24.06%. The business had revenue of $11.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.91 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. 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 is 13.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Travelers Companies

In other Travelers Companies news, insider Avrohom J. Kess sold 6,735 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $308.78, for a total value of $2,079,633.30. Following the transaction, the insider owned 48,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,049,010.86. This trade represents a 12.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 1,557 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.64, for a total transaction of $483,666.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 259,590 shares in the company, valued at $80,639,037.60. This represents a 0.60% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 37,573 shares of company stock valued at $11,504,146. Corporate insiders own 1.39% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on TRV. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (a-)" rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Travelers Companies from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Travelers Companies from $340.00 to $342.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Travelers Companies from $297.00 to $314.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Evercore restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $311.47.

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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