RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Analysts

Shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Hold" from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $78.60.

A number of research firms have commented on RLI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on RLI from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered RLI from a "buy" rating to an "underperform" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of RLI from $88.00 to $80.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Compass Point cut shares of RLI from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of RLI in a report on Thursday, April 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling at RLI

In other RLI news, Director Jordan W. Graham sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.77, for a total value of $112,155.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,854 shares in the company, valued at $961,093.58. This represents a 10.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert P. Restrepo, Jr. sold 2,864 shares of RLI stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.89, for a total value of $214,484.96. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,312 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,745,835.68. The trade was a 10.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On RLI

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RLI. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in RLI by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 372 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in RLI by 53.8% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 203 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in RLI by 88.5% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 477 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Compass Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of RLI by 100.0% during the first quarter. Compass Wealth Management LLC now owns 480 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of RLI by 56.8% in the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 530 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. 77.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

RLI Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:RLI opened at $74.53 on Friday. RLI has a 1 year low of $68.50 and a 1 year high of $91.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The stock's 50-day moving average is $76.30 and its 200 day moving average is $79.18. The company has a market cap of $6.84 billion, a PE ratio of 19.90 and a beta of 0.49.

RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.04. RLI had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 19.53%. The business had revenue of $36.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $442.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.95 EPS. The business's revenue was down 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that RLI will post 3.08 EPS for the current year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. This is a positive change from RLI's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. RLI's payout ratio is 19.74%.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.