LSV Asset Management Lowers Stake in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

LSV Asset Management cut its stake in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA - Free Report) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 998,507 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 6,000 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned approximately 0.37% of CNA Financial worth $48,298,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of CNA. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in CNA Financial by 663.4% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 771 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CNA Financial by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,265 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of CNA Financial by 28.3% during the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,475 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in CNA Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in CNA Financial by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,051 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. 98.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CNA Financial Stock Up 0.5 %

CNA stock traded up $0.25 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $47.99. 63,905 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 319,396. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $48.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.73. CNA Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $42.33 and a 52 week high of $52.36. The company has a market cap of $12.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.63, a P/E/G ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.47.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.14. CNA Financial had a net margin of 6.72% and a return on equity of 12.90%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.83%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This is a positive change from CNA Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. CNA Financial's dividend payout ratio is 52.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CNA. StockNews.com downgraded CNA Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of CNA Financial from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Dino Robusto sold 6,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.06, for a total value of $319,125.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 718,088 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $36,665,573.28. This represents a 0.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 12,991 shares of CNA Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.06, for a total value of $637,338.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 75,612 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,709,524.72. This represents a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 25,491 shares of company stock worth $1,261,838 in the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

CNA Financial Profile

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.