Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) Shares Sold by Invesco Ltd.

Invesco Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE - Free Report) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 204,522 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 16,349 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned approximately 0.72% of Universal Insurance worth $4,307,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UVE. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 13,804 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Universal Insurance by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 21,799 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $459,000 after purchasing an additional 1,775 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Universal Insurance by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 24,415 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $514,000 after purchasing an additional 2,160 shares in the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP grew its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 76,132 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,603,000 after buying an additional 3,221 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Universal Insurance by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,674,545 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $35,266,000 after buying an additional 4,480 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.61% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Insurance

In related news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.08, for a total value of $441,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 990,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,863,616. This trade represents a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 17.50% of the company's stock.

Universal Insurance Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of UVE stock traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $24.09. The company had a trading volume of 12,099 shares, compared to its average volume of 178,096. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $676.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.78 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.23. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.50 and a 12 month high of $25.64.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.32. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 4.82%. The company had revenue of $394.87 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $354.97 million. On average, research analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.66%. Universal Insurance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Universal Insurance from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.