Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 12,975 Shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE - Free Report) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 197,427 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 12,975 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.70% of Universal Insurance worth $4,158,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in Universal Insurance during the fourth quarter worth about $103,000. Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its stake in Universal Insurance by 45,981.8% in the fourth quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 5,069 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 5,058 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in Universal Insurance during the third quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Universal Insurance during the fourth quarter worth approximately $240,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 13,804 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 732 shares during the last quarter. 66.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Universal Insurance from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th.

Insider Transactions at Universal Insurance

In other Universal Insurance news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.08, for a total value of $441,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 990,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,863,616. This trade represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 17.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Universal Insurance Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE UVE traded down $0.45 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $22.71. The company had a trading volume of 143,840 shares, compared to its average volume of 177,055. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $21.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $16.50 and a one year high of $24.14. The stock has a market cap of $638.06 million, a PE ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.76.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The insurance provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.16. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 4.82%. The firm had revenue of $384.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $349.91 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Universal Insurance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.16%.

About Universal Insurance

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.