Vest Financial LLC Buys 8,373 Shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

Key Points

• Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in The Travelers Companies by 5.0%, buying 8,373 shares to hold 176,961 shares worth about $51.33 million (≈0.08% ownership).
• Travelers beat expectations with quarterly EPS of $7.71 (vs. $6.80 est.) and revenue of $11.92 billion, and the board raised the quarterly dividend to $1.25 while authorizing a $5.0 billion share buyback (up to 8.3% of shares).
• Insider selling totaled 95,414 shares in the past 90 days — including CEO Alan Schnitzer's 55,733‑share sale (~$16.4M) — and analysts hold a consensus "Hold" rating with a $309.13 target price.

Vest Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 176,961 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 8,373 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.08% of Travelers Companies worth $51,329,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Travelers Companies by 1,820.0% in the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Travelers Companies by 134.1% during the third 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 in the last quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. raised its stake in Travelers Companies by 65.3% during the third quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 119 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. eCIO Inc. acquired a new position in Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Optima Capital LLC acquired a new position in Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors own 82.45% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on TRV shares. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on Travelers Companies from $316.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. 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. 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. Weiss Ratings upgraded Travelers Companies from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Argus upgraded Travelers Companies to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. 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 issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $309.13.

Insider Transactions at Travelers Companies

In other news, EVP Diane Kurtzman sold 2,867 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.45, for a total transaction of $869,991.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,298 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,607,678.10. The trade was a 35.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan D. Schnitzer sold 55,733 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.70, for a total value of $16,424,515.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 260,329 shares of the company's stock, valued at $76,718,956.30. The trade was a 17.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 95,414 shares of company stock valued at $28,428,461. 1.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Travelers Companies Price Performance

Shares of TRV stock opened at $303.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $300.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $289.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $64.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.04, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.51. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $249.19 and a 12 month high of $313.12.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $7.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.80 by $0.91. The firm had revenue of $11.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.11 billion. Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 24.06% and a net margin of 15.54%.The company's revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.91 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 27.83 EPS for the current year.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be given a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 10th. This is a positive change from Travelers Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Travelers Companies's dividend payout ratio is 13.09%.

Travelers Companies declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Travelers Companies Company 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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