Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Increases Position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 60.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,658 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 10,393 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $2,451,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital in the 4th quarter worth about $88,175,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $88,147,000. FIL Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital in the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,893,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,775,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 7,053.2% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 353,941 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $31,366,000 after purchasing an additional 348,993 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AXS. UBS Group raised their price objective on AXIS Capital from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AXIS Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AXIS Capital currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $107.75.

AXIS Capital Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of AXIS Capital stock traded up $2.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $107.07. The stock had a trading volume of 1,085,788 shares, compared to its average volume of 599,881. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $98.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $93.84. The firm has a market cap of $8.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $68.02 and a 12-month high of $107.34.

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

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio is presently 17.46%.

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.