Verisk Analytics, Inc. $VRSK Shares Sold by Franklin Resources Inc.

Key Points

• Franklin Resources trimmed its stake in Verisk by 9.6%, selling 127,808 shares and leaving 1,205,529 shares (about 0.86% of the company) valued at $303.2 million.
• Verisk beat quarterly expectations (EPS $1.82 vs. $1.60 est.), set FY‑2026 guidance of 7.45–7.75 EPS, authorized a $2.50 billion buyback (up to 10.1% of shares) and raised the quarterly dividend to $0.50.
• Wall Street’s consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $237.20, while the stock trades near $198 with a market cap of $27.3 billion and a PE of 30.5.

Franklin Resources Inc. decreased its stake in Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK - Free Report) by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,205,529 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 127,808 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.86% of Verisk Analytics worth $303,203,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in Verisk Analytics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Verisk Analytics in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Verisk Analytics in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.00% of the company's stock.

Verisk Analytics Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:VRSK opened at $198.04 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $27.32 billion, a PE ratio of 30.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $204.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $224.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.42. Verisk Analytics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $164.60 and a 12-month high of $322.92.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $778.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $773.74 million. Verisk Analytics had a net margin of 29.56% and a return on equity of 357.00%. The firm's revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. Verisk Analytics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.450-7.75 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verisk Analytics, Inc. will post 6.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verisk Analytics declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 18th that allows the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 10.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Verisk Analytics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Verisk Analytics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Verisk Analytics's dividend payout ratio is 27.73%.

Insider Transactions at Verisk Analytics

In other news, Director Christopher John Perry acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $180.00 per share, with a total value of $180,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 2,994 shares in the company, valued at $538,920. This represents a 50.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Elizabeth Mann sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.54, for a total value of $65,862.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 14,265 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,131,738.10. This represents a 2.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRSK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Verisk Analytics from $223.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research note on Monday, December 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Verisk Analytics from $239.00 to $206.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verisk Analytics from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, January 25th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Verisk Analytics in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $205.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $237.20.

About Verisk Analytics

Verisk Analytics, Inc NASDAQ: VRSK is a data analytics and decision‑support provider that helps organizations assess and manage risk. The company supplies data, predictive models and software to customers in insurance, reinsurance, financial services, government, energy and other commercial markets. Its offerings are designed to support underwriting, pricing, claims management, catastrophe modeling, fraud detection and regulatory compliance, enabling clients to make more informed operational and strategic decisions.

Verisk's product portfolio combines large proprietary datasets with analytics platforms and industry‑specific applications.

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