UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Has $25.31 Million Holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 12.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 285,593 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 31,042 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.34% of AXIS Capital worth $25,309,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AXS. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,931 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $171,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,799 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $248,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 21.6% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 900 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in AXIS Capital by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 40,915 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $3,626,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in AXIS Capital by 28.5% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 833 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AXIS Capital news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,959.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,404,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $224,786,435.50. This represents a 47.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

Shares of AXS stock traded up $1.35 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $103.90. The company had a trading volume of 640,228 shares, compared to its average volume of 593,723. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12 month low of $68.02 and a 12 month high of $104.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.41, a PEG ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.82. The firm's fifty day moving average is $97.65 and its 200 day moving average is $93.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.53. The company had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.83 billion. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 18.16%. The company's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.07 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on AXS shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on AXIS Capital from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on AXIS Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded AXIS Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on AXIS Capital from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $107.75.

About AXIS Capital

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.