James River Group (NASDAQ:JRVR) Stock Price Crosses Above Fifty Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

James River Group Holdings, Ltd. (NASDAQ:JRVR - Get Free Report) shares passed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $5.66 and traded as high as $5.88. James River Group shares last traded at $5.85, with a volume of 177,531 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on JRVR shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of James River Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $8.00 price objective on shares of James River Group in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $6.06.

James River Group Stock Up 0.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $262.03 million, a PE ratio of -1.85 and a beta of 0.08. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $5.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $4.92.

James River Group (NASDAQ:JRVR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.05). James River Group had a negative net margin of 12.81% and a negative return on equity of 2.12%. The company had revenue of $172.29 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $184.15 million. On average, analysts forecast that James River Group Holdings, Ltd. will post -0.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

James River Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th were issued a $0.01 dividend. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 9th. James River Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -1.29%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Christine Lasala bought 29,125 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $5.23 per share, with a total value of $152,323.75. Following the purchase, the director owned 60,758 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $317,764.34. This trade represents a 92.07% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Peter B. Migliorato bought 18,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $5.46 per share, for a total transaction of $101,010.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 39,201 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,037.46. This represents a 89.37% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 64,625 shares of company stock valued at $353,124. Corporate insiders own 16.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of JRVR. Gallatin Point Capital LLC purchased a new position in James River Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,535,000. Zimmer Partners LP raised its holdings in James River Group by 684.4% in the first quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 2,162,484 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $9,082,000 after buying an additional 1,886,781 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in James River Group by 101.6% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 850,526 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,144,000 after buying an additional 428,636 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in James River Group in the first quarter worth about $455,000. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in James River Group by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,111,291 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $5,412,000 after buying an additional 93,348 shares during the last quarter. 95.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

James River Group Company Profile

James River Group Holdings, Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides specialty insurance services. It operates through Excess and Surplus Lines, and Specialty Admitted Insurance segments. The Excess and Surplus Lines segment underwrites liability and property insurance in the United States Puerto Rice, and the United States Virgin Islands.