Natixis Boosts Stock Position in Loews Co. (NYSE:L)

Natixis boosted its position in shares of Loews Co. (NYSE:L - Free Report) by 70.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 44,978 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 18,615 shares during the quarter. Natixis' holdings in Loews were worth $3,809,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Loews in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Loews in the third quarter worth about $49,000. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Loews in the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in Loews in the fourth quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Loews in the fourth quarter worth about $68,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.33% of the company's stock.

Loews Price Performance

L traded down $0.94 during trading on Friday, reaching $85.30. 447,499 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 733,568. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34. Loews Co. has a 12-month low of $73.15 and a 12-month high of $92.42. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $86.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $84.55. The company has a market cap of $17.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.33 and a beta of 0.60.

Loews (NYSE:L - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter. Loews had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 8.04%.

Loews Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a $0.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.29%. Loews's dividend payout ratio is presently 3.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com cut Loews from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jonathan M. Tisch sold 3,691 shares of Loews stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.89, for a total value of $320,710.99. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jonathan M. Tisch sold 50,000 shares of Loews stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.08, for a total value of $4,254,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,105,529 shares of the company's stock, valued at $604,538,407.32. The trade was a 0.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 151,327 shares of company stock worth $12,851,055 over the last three months. 18.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Loews

Loews Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance in the United States and internationally. The company offers specialty insurance products, such as management and professional liability, and other coverage products; surety and fidelity bonds; property insurance products that include standard and excess property, marine and boiler, and machinery coverages; and casualty insurance products, such as workers' compensation, general and product liability, and commercial auto, surplus, and umbrella coverages.