AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Shares Sold by Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc.

Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 22.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 225,456 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 64,800 shares during the quarter. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.26% of AXIS Capital worth $12,483,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AXS. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in AXIS Capital by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 973,886 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $53,924,000 after purchasing an additional 31,765 shares during the last quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital during the 4th quarter worth approximately $232,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in AXIS Capital by 24.4% during the 4th quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,100 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $282,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its position in AXIS Capital by 185.1% in the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 488,556 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $27,051,000 after acquiring an additional 317,169 shares during the period. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 15,155 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $839,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AXIS Capital Trading Up 0.8 %

AXS stock traded up $0.54 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $70.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 831,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 693,100. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12 month low of $51.61 and a 12 month high of $70.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a market cap of $5.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.80. The business's 50 day moving average price is $63.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.16.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The insurance provider reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.17. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.11% and a net margin of 10.34%. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.49 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.33 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.1 EPS for the current year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.91%.

Insider Activity at AXIS Capital

In other AXIS Capital news, Director W Marston Becker purchased 3,025 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $66.58 per share, with a total value of $201,404.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,821 shares in the company, valued at $1,452,842.18. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AXS. UBS Group increased their price objective on AXIS Capital from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. StockNews.com upgraded AXIS Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on AXIS Capital from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $68.33.

AXIS Capital Company 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.