ProAssurance (NYSE:PRA) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• ProAssurance crossed above its 200‑day moving average, trading as high as $24.75 (200‑day MA $24.26) on volume of about 1.08 million shares, a potential technical bullish signal.
• The company reported a sizable earnings beat, posting $0.82 EPS versus $0.22 expected and $269.6M in revenue (vs. $261.1M est.), although revenue was down about 7.1% year‑over‑year.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but cautious: the consensus rating is a “Moderate Buy” with a $25.00 price target, while institutional ownership is high (85.58%) and several hedge funds have recently increased stakes.

ProAssurance Corporation (NYSE:PRA - Get Free Report) passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $24.26 and traded as high as $24.75. ProAssurance shares last traded at $24.6550, with a volume of 1,084,912 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on PRA. Zacks Research raised shares of ProAssurance from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of ProAssurance in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded ProAssurance from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $25.00.

ProAssurance Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $24.26. The company has a market cap of $1.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.16 and a beta of 0.02.

ProAssurance (NYSE:PRA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.60. ProAssurance had a return on equity of 6.50% and a net margin of 4.64%.The company had revenue of $269.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $261.08 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.36 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that ProAssurance Corporation will post 1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ProAssurance

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRA. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in ProAssurance by 186.1% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,491,060 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $34,041,000 after purchasing an additional 969,833 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in ProAssurance by 360.0% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,039,901 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $25,124,000 after purchasing an additional 813,814 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in ProAssurance by 41.6% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,711,805 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $65,056,000 after purchasing an additional 796,132 shares during the last quarter. Man Group plc acquired a new position in ProAssurance during the third quarter valued at approximately $17,058,000. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of ProAssurance by 1,050.0% in the third quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 575,000 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $13,794,000 after acquiring an additional 525,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company's stock.

About ProAssurance

ProAssurance Corporation is a specialty property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. The company focuses primarily on professional liability coverage for healthcare providers, including physicians, surgeons, dentists and allied health professionals. ProAssurance operates through a group of insurance subsidiaries that underwrite both occurrence- and claims-made policies tailored to the unique risks faced by the medical community.

In addition to professional liability insurance, ProAssurance offers a suite of complementary property and casualty products, such as general liability, workers' compensation, property and inland marine, and umbrella coverage.

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