RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• RLI Corp. has a consensus analyst rating of "Hold" from seven brokerages, with an average 12-month price target of $61.50.
• Recent analyst actions were mixed but leaned cautious, including downgrades from Wall Street Zen and Weiss Ratings, while Wells Fargo lowered its price target to $55.
• Company insiders were active buyers, with the COO and CEO each purchasing 2,000 shares, and RLI also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.18 per share from $0.16.

Shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the seven brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $61.50.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of RLI from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of RLI from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Zacks Research raised shares of RLI from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of RLI from $59.00 to $55.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th.

Insider Transactions at RLI

In related news, COO Jennifer L. Klobnak acquired 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $52.72 per share, with a total value of $105,440.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer directly owned 104,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,499,644.96. This trade represents a 1.95% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Craig W. Kliethermes bought 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $52.00 per share, with a total value of $104,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 150,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,851,480. This trade represents a 1.34% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders purchased a total of 16,500 shares of company stock valued at $858,955 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 2.39% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of RLI

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in RLI by 28.5% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 835 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in RLI by 233.6% in the 1st quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 374,447 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $21,358,000 after purchasing an additional 262,218 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in RLI by 37.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 282,656 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $16,123,000 after buying an additional 76,413 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in RLI by 12.0% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 416,647 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $23,765,000 after buying an additional 44,481 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi bought a new position in RLI during the 1st quarter worth $294,000. 77.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

RLI Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RLI opened at $62.51 on Friday. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $52.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $57.82. RLI has a 52 week low of $47.26 and a 52 week high of $72.12. The firm has a market cap of $5.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 0.38.

RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.10. RLI had a return on equity of 17.72% and a net margin of 20.81%.The company had revenue of $423.87 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $564.47 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.92 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that RLI will post 2.75 earnings per share for the current year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were given a $0.18 dividend. This is a boost from RLI's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. RLI's dividend payout ratio is presently 16.82%.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corporation NYSE: RLI is a specialty property and casualty insurance company focused on underwriting niche risks for businesses and individuals. Headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, the company operates through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering customized coverage solutions. RLI's approach emphasizes disciplined underwriting, targeted product development and strong customer service to maintain profitability and long-term growth.

Founded in 1965 as Replacement Lens, Inc, RLI initially provided insurance for contact lens manufacturers before shifting its focus to specialty insurance in the 1980s.

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