Universal Insurance Holdings Inc $UVE Shares Sold by Donald Smith & CO. Inc.

Key Points

• Donald Smith & Co. Inc. cut its stake in Universal Insurance Holdings by 23.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 345,521 shares and leaving it with 1,149,374 shares valued at about $38.8 million.
• Universal Insurance shares rose 2.0% and were trading at $37.96, near their 52-week high of $41.96. The company carries a market cap of about $1.06 billion and trades at a relatively low P/E ratio of 5.62.
• The insurer posted strong quarterly earnings of $2.00 per share, topping estimates by $0.61, and also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share, equal to a 1.7% annualized yield.

Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lessened its holdings in Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE - Free Report) by 23.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,149,374 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 345,521 shares during the quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. owned about 4.10% of Universal Insurance worth $38,849,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of UVE. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 212.3% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 596,370 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $15,685,000 after buying an additional 405,403 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 106.0% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 280,957 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,389,000 after buying an additional 144,553 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 19.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 815,484 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $27,566,000 after buying an additional 134,805 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,953,721 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $51,383,000 after purchasing an additional 108,660 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 56.3% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 281,314 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,801,000 after purchasing an additional 101,333 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.61% of the company's stock.

Universal Insurance Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:UVE opened at $37.96 on Thursday. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a 1 year low of $21.96 and a 1 year high of $41.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.62 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The business's 50 day moving average price is $37.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.10.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $398.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $481.09 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 37.51% and a net margin of 12.22%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 4.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Universal Insurance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on UVE. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Universal Insurance from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Universal Insurance from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Universal Insurance presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $40.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Universal Insurance news, CAO Kimberly D. Campos sold 879 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.84, for a total value of $29,745.36. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $251,160.48. This trade represents a 10.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.60, for a total value of $692,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 1,206,788 shares in the company, valued at $41,754,864.80. The trade was a 1.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 60,879 shares of company stock worth $2,290,145 in the last 90 days. 15.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Universal Insurance Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc NYSE: UVE is a property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. The company underwrites homeowners and other residential property insurance products to protect against natural catastrophes such as hurricanes, windstorms and fires. It distributes policies primarily through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering coverage for primary residences, secondary homes, condominiums, vacant dwellings and rental properties across its service territory.

In addition to personal lines, Universal provides commercial property and casualty insurance tailored to small businesses and institutional clients.

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