Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) Stock: Insider Henry Smith Sells 4,893 Shares

Key Points

• Director Henry Smith sold 4,893 Axis Capital shares for approximately $519,392, reducing his direct ownership by 10.56% to 41,454 shares.
• Axis Capital shares rose 1.7% to $106.64, while the insurer reported quarterly EPS of $3.12 and revenue of $1.79 billion, beating analyst expectations.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $120 price target; the company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, yielding about 1.7%.

Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) Director Henry Smith sold 4,893 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.15, for a total value of $519,391.95. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 41,454 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,400,342.10. This represents a 10.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Axis Capital Stock Up 1.7%

NYSE AXS traded up $1.77 during trading on Monday, reaching $106.64. 852,277 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 659,988. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a fifty-two week low of $92.23 and a fifty-two week high of $119.99. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $98.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $101.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.65 billion, a PE ratio of 8.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.38.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The insurance provider reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.85 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.69 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 16.61% and a net margin of 14.62%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.25 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 12.38 EPS for the current year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Axis Capital's payout ratio is presently 13.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AXS. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Axis Capital from $112.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Zacks Research upgraded Axis Capital from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, October 9th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Axis Capital from $131.00 to $126.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Axis Capital has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $120.00.

Institutional Trading of Axis Capital

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,682,238 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $373,412,000 after purchasing an additional 299,573 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in Axis Capital by 1.2% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,710,902 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $173,504,000 after purchasing an additional 21,001 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in Axis Capital by 14.0% in the first quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,362,091 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $138,130,000 after purchasing an additional 167,337 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Axis Capital by 2.2% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,071,887 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $108,700,000 after buying an additional 23,109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in Axis Capital by 31.4% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 979,944 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $99,376,000 after buying an additional 234,353 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Axis Capital

Axis Capital Holdings Limited NYSE: AXS is a Bermuda-based specialty insurance and reinsurance company. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company provides coverage and risk-management solutions for businesses, institutions and other insurers facing complex or difficult-to-place risks.

AXIS offers a range of commercial property and casualty insurance products, including professional liability, cyber, marine, aviation, energy, environmental, political risk, credit and surety, and accident and health coverage.

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