Insider Selling: Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) Chairman Sells 25,000 Shares of Stock

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 25,000 shares of Universal Insurance stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.91, for a total value of $672,750.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 926,667 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,936,608.97. This trade represents a 2.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

UVE stock traded up $0.24 during trading on Monday, hitting $26.68. 227,659 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 190,275. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $25.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $750.99 million, a PE ratio of 10.85 and a beta of 0.87. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.50 and a 1 year high of $28.49.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The insurance provider reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $394.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $354.97 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 4.82%. On average, equities analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. Universal Insurance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded Universal Insurance from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

Institutional Trading of Universal Insurance

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UVE. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 171.5% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 343,786 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $8,148,000 after buying an additional 217,184 shares in the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 1,720,519 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $36,234,000 after buying an additional 174,843 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,197,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 9.4% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 805,199 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $19,083,000 after buying an additional 69,289 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 9.8% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 668,641 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $15,847,000 after buying an additional 59,752 shares in the last quarter. 66.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

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.