Insider Buying: AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Director Acquires 1,400 Shares of Stock

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) Director Michael Millegan bought 1,400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $71.49 per share, for a total transaction of $100,086.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,016 shares in the company, valued at $644,553.84. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

AXIS Capital Trading Up 0.6 %

AXS traded up $0.44 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $72.38. The company had a trading volume of 621,347 shares, compared to its average volume of 643,331. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $51.61 and a 12-month high of $72.77. The company has a market cap of $6.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.07, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.80. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $64.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.92.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The insurance provider reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.17. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 10.34% and a return on equity of 19.11%. The business had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.33 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.07 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.91%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 45.9% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 588 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Steph & Co. increased its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 10,028 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $555,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,833 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $101,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 14,830 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $821,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its position in AXIS Capital by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 8,688 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group boosted their target price on AXIS Capital from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on AXIS Capital from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised AXIS Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four 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 $68.33.

About AXIS Capital

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism.

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