Arch Capital Group (NASDAQ:ACGL) Sees Large Volume Increase - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Arch Capital shares rose to $99.97 as trading volume increased 46% to 3.07 million shares, above both the prior session’s volume and the 200-day moving average price of $96.76.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but generally positive: seven analysts rate the stock a Buy, seven Hold, and one Sell. The average price target is $111.11, with recent targets ranging from $104 to $120.
• Arch Capital exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.56 in EPS versus a $2.47 estimate and $4.67 billion in revenue versus $4.36 billion expected. Analysts forecast full-year EPS of $9.44.

Shares of Arch Capital Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:ACGL - Get Free Report) saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday . 3,065,816 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 46% from the previous session's volume of 2,100,823 shares.The stock last traded at $99.9650 and had previously closed at $98.21.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $120.00 price objective (up from $115.00) on shares of Arch Capital Group in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup reiterated a "market outperform" rating on shares of Arch Capital Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Arch Capital Group in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Arch Capital Group from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Arch Capital Group from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $111.11.

Arch Capital Group Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $100.04 and a 200-day moving average of $96.76. The stock has a market cap of $34.26 billion, a PE ratio of 7.85, a PEG ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.57.

Arch Capital Group (NASDAQ:ACGL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The insurance provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $4.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.36 billion. Arch Capital Group had a net margin of 24.40% and a return on equity of 17.06%. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.58 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Arch Capital Group Ltd. will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Francois Morin sold 11,010 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.32, for a total transaction of $1,093,513.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 184,826 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,356,918.32. This represents a 5.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Arch Capital Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Arch Capital Group by 9,977.0% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 47,698,002 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $4,629,568,000 after acquiring an additional 47,224,669 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Arch Capital Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $463,208,000. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Arch Capital Group by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,289,082 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $411,409,000 after purchasing an additional 33,132 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Arch Capital Group by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,173,885 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $400,643,000 after purchasing an additional 117,929 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Madison Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Arch Capital Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $368,808,000. 89.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Arch Capital Group

Arch Capital Group Ltd. NASDAQ: ACGL is a Bermuda-based insurance and reinsurance holding company that underwrites a broad range of property and casualty, mortgage, and specialty risk products. The company operates through a group of underwriting subsidiaries and platforms to provide insurance, reinsurance and related risk solutions tailored to commercial, institutional and individual clients.

Arch's product mix includes treaty and facultative reinsurance, primary casualty and property insurance, mortgage insurance and other specialty lines.

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