Two Sigma Securities LLC Takes Position in Loews Co. (NYSE:L)

Two Sigma Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Loews Co. (NYSE:L - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,189 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $270,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Loews by 13.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 752,380 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $59,473,000 after buying an additional 87,259 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Loews in the third quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Synovus Financial Corp acquired a new position in Loews in the third quarter worth $205,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Loews by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 248,665 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $19,657,000 after acquiring an additional 7,149 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Loews by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,580 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $557,000 after purchasing an additional 1,253 shares in the last quarter. 58.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Loews from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th.

Loews Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE L traded up $1.77 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $88.08. 519,396 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 730,188. Loews Co. has a 12 month low of $73.15 and a 12 month high of $92.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.34. The company has a market capitalization of $18.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.76 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $86.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.66.

Loews (NYSE:L - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Loews had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 8.04%.

Loews Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.28%. Loews's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jonathan M. Tisch sold 3,691 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.89, for a total transaction of $320,710.99. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jonathan M. Tisch sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.08, for a total transaction of $4,254,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,105,529 shares in the company, valued at approximately $604,538,407.32. This trade represents a 0.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 151,327 shares of company stock valued at $12,851,055 in the last three months. 19.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Loews Profile

Loews Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance in the United States and internationally. The company offers specialty insurance products, such as management and professional liability, and other coverage products; surety and fidelity bonds; property insurance products that include standard and excess property, marine and boiler, and machinery coverages; and casualty insurance products, such as workers' compensation, general and product liability, and commercial auto, surplus, and umbrella coverages.