Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest fell sharply: Universal Insurance’s short interest dropped 59.4% to 546,050 shares as of August 14, equal to 2.3% of shares outstanding and 3.1 days of average trading volume.
• Institutional ownership increased: Institutional investors own 66.61% of UVE, with notable second-quarter purchases by California State Teachers Retirement System, UBS Asset Management and Empowered Funds.
• Shares remain near their 52-week high: UVE opened at $43.33, compared with a 52-week range of $24.09 to $45.15. The company beat quarterly EPS expectations, declared a $0.16 quarterly dividend, and analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $45 average price target.

Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 546,050 shares, a decrease of 59.4% from the July 30th total of 1,344,189 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 175,782 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days. Currently, 2.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Insurance

In related news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.27, for a total transaction of $885,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 1,104,645 shares in the company, valued at $48,902,634.15. This trade represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 15.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Universal Insurance

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UVE. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in shares of Universal Insurance in the 2nd quarter valued at $718,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 4,666.2% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 1,178,098 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $48,726,000 after purchasing an additional 1,153,380 shares during the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance during the second quarter worth $253,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 100.7% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 69,962 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,894,000 after purchasing an additional 35,097 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in Universal Insurance in the second quarter valued at about $6,203,000. 66.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

UVE stock opened at $43.33 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $41.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.87. Universal Insurance has a fifty-two week low of $24.09 and a fifty-two week high of $45.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of 5.72 and a beta of 0.72.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $419.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $614.62 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 37.67% and a net margin of 13.49%. Analysts forecast that Universal Insurance will post 4.85 EPS for the current year.

Universal Insurance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st were issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 31st. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Universal Insurance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Universal Insurance from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 9th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Universal Insurance from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Universal Insurance from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Universal Insurance from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $45.00.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc NYSE: UVE is a property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. The company underwrites homeowners and other residential property insurance products to protect against natural catastrophes such as hurricanes, windstorms and fires. It distributes policies primarily through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering coverage for primary residences, secondary homes, condominiums, vacant dwellings and rental properties across its service territory.

In addition to personal lines, Universal provides commercial property and casualty insurance tailored to small businesses and institutional clients.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source