Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Lowers RLI (NYSE:RLI) Price Target to $67.00

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered its price target on RLI to $67 (from $70) while maintaining an "outperform" rating, implying roughly a 15.42% upside from the prior close.
• The street consensus is a "Hold" (one Buy, seven Hold) with a consensus target of $62.40; RLI traded around $58.05 and has a market cap near $5.34 billion.
• RLI beat Q4 estimates with $0.94 EPS vs. $0.76 expected and $465.7M revenue vs. $447.5M, and insiders (CEO and COO) purchased shares, indicating management confidence.

RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) had its price target lowered by stock analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $70.00 to $67.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the insurance provider's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price target points to a potential upside of 15.42% from the company's previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on RLI. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of RLI from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $52.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of RLI in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of RLI from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $59.00 price objective on shares of RLI and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial set a $58.00 price objective on shares of RLI in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $62.40.

RLI Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE RLI traded up $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $58.05. 253,362 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 770,903. RLI has a 1 year low of $55.80 and a 1 year high of $79.55. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.60. The stock has a market cap of $5.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.31 and a beta of 0.52.

RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The insurance provider reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.18. RLI had a return on equity of 18.67% and a net margin of 21.43%.The firm had revenue of $465.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.53 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.41 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that RLI will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Craig W. Kliethermes purchased 5,000 shares of RLI stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $57.45 per share, for a total transaction of $287,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 143,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,272,225.50. The trade was a 3.60% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Jennifer L. Klobnak purchased 2,000 shares of RLI stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $57.99 per share, with a total value of $115,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 100,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,817,440.82. This trade represents a 2.03% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 2.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RLI

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of RLI by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,448,929 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $604,542,000 after acquiring an additional 310,857 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of RLI by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,875,002 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $567,823,000 after purchasing an additional 124,687 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of RLI by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,191,891 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $140,260,000 after purchasing an additional 67,025 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of RLI by 65.3% during the 4th quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 1,938,186 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $124,005,000 after purchasing an additional 765,344 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of RLI by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,899,524 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $121,536,000 after purchasing an additional 112,541 shares in the last quarter. 77.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corporation NYSE: RLI is a specialty property and casualty insurance company focused on underwriting niche risks for businesses and individuals. Headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, the company operates through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering customized coverage solutions. RLI's approach emphasizes disciplined underwriting, targeted product development and strong customer service to maintain profitability and long-term growth.

Founded in 1965 as Replacement Lens, Inc, RLI initially provided insurance for contact lens manufacturers before shifting its focus to specialty insurance in the 1980s.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.