AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Holdings Trimmed by River Road Asset Management LLC

River Road Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,902,069 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 13,494 shares during the period. AXIS Capital makes up about 1.5% of River Road Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. River Road Asset Management LLC owned 2.23% of AXIS Capital worth $105,318,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AXS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in AXIS Capital by 50.9% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 125,923 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $7,614,000 after purchasing an additional 42,496 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in AXIS Capital by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 275,103 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $16,635,000 after purchasing an additional 16,513 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in AXIS Capital by 447.2% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 487 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the period. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC purchased a new stake in AXIS Capital during the 1st quarter worth $366,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can purchased a new stake in AXIS Capital during the 1st quarter worth $201,000. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AXIS Capital Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE:AXS traded down $0.54 on Wednesday, reaching $60.71. The stock had a trading volume of 591,498 shares, compared to its average volume of 632,916. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a 50-day moving average of $62.52 and a 200 day moving average of $58.24. The stock has a market cap of $5.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.80. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $51.61 and a 12-month high of $65.86.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The insurance provider reported $2.94 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.25) by $4.19. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 6.67% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The business had revenue of $1.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.42 billion. On average, research analysts predict that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.1 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 1st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. AXIS Capital's payout ratio is 43.78%.

Insider Transactions at AXIS Capital

In related news, Director Stanley A. Galanski purchased 7,000 shares of AXIS Capital stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $58.45 per share, with a total value of $409,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $570,647.35. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on AXS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of AXIS Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AXIS Capital has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $67.33.

AXIS Capital Profile

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.