Insider Selling: Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) CEO Sells $603,424.50 in Stock

Key Points

• Verisk Analytics CEO Lee Shavel sold 3,535 shares for approximately $603,425 at an average price of $170.70, reducing his ownership by 3.46% to 98,490 shares.
• VRSK shares fell 2.7% to $163.88, near the lower end of their 52-week range, despite the company beating quarterly earnings and revenue expectations.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $226.71, while Verisk pays a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, representing a 1.2% yield.

Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK - Get Free Report) CEO Lee Shavel sold 3,535 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.70, for a total transaction of $603,424.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 98,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,243. This trade represents a 3.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Lee Shavel also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, September 1st, Lee Shavel sold 3,535 shares of Verisk Analytics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.43, for a total transaction of $683,775.05.
• On Monday, August 3rd, Lee Shavel sold 3,535 shares of Verisk Analytics stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.94, for a total transaction of $696,182.90.
• On Wednesday, July 29th, Lee Shavel sold 2,500 shares of Verisk Analytics stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $550,000.00.

Verisk Analytics Trading Down 2.7%

VRSK stock traded down $4.50 on Friday, hitting $163.88. 826,024 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,950,394. The stock has a market cap of $21.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.69. Verisk Analytics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $155.94 and a 1-year high of $250.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $184.56 and a 200-day moving average of $182.55.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $806.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $804.02 million. Verisk Analytics had a negative return on equity of 239.55% and a net margin of 28.24%.The firm's revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.88 earnings per share. Verisk Analytics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.450-7.750 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verisk Analytics, Inc. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verisk Analytics Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 15th. Verisk Analytics's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.72%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raiffeisen Bank International AG raised its holdings in shares of Verisk Analytics by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 255,194 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $57,255,000 after purchasing an additional 40,885 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Verisk Analytics in the second quarter worth $20,085,000. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Verisk Analytics during the second quarter worth $974,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in Verisk Analytics by 880.1% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 60,285 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $10,823,000 after buying an additional 54,134 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co bought a new position in Verisk Analytics during the first quarter valued at about $949,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRSK has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $185.00 price objective on Verisk Analytics and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Verisk Analytics from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Evercore set a $223.00 price target on shares of Verisk Analytics in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $247.00 price target on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $226.71.

About Verisk Analytics

Verisk Analytics, Inc is a data analytics and technology company that provides information, software and predictive insights primarily to the insurance industry. Its solutions help insurers assess risk, support underwriting, manage claims, detect fraud and improve pricing and operational decision-making across property and casualty, life and specialty insurance markets.

The company's offerings include industry data and standardized insurance information through its ISO business, catastrophe modeling and risk analytics through Extreme Event Solutions and AIR Worldwide, and property estimating and claims-management tools through Xactware.

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