Vestcor Inc Invests $633,000 in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc has acquired a new stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited valued at approximately $633,000, purchasing 6,314 shares during the first quarter.
• Several brokerages have recently updated their ratings for Axis Capital, with UBS Group raising their price target from $105.00 to $115.00 and maintaining a "buy" rating.
• Axis Capital announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44, representing an annualized dividend yield of 1.9%, with a dividend payout ratio of 16.92%.

Vestcor Inc bought a new stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 6,314 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $633,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 6,694 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $671,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Axis Capital by 14.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,853 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $186,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 133,675 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $11,846,000 after purchasing an additional 4,303 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 314,372 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $31,513,000 after purchasing an additional 8,443 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in Axis Capital during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $319,000. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Axis Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Axis Capital from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $111.43.

Axis Capital Price Performance

NYSE:AXS traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $94.23. 821,089 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 732,664. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market cap of $7.37 billion, a PE ratio of 9.06, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.83. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 12 month low of $71.64 and a 12 month high of $107.19. The company has a fifty day moving average of $99.87 and a 200 day moving average of $96.66.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The company's revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.93 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. Axis Capital's dividend payout ratio is 16.92%.

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.