Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Chairman Sells $692,000.00 in Stock

Key Points

• On March 25, Chairman Sean Downes sold 20,000 shares at an average price of $34.60 for a total of $692,000, trimming his stake by 1.63% while still owning 1,206,788 shares (≈$41.75M).
• Universal beat expectations for the latest quarter with $2.17 EPS vs. $1.30 consensus and revenue of $403.6M (vs. $373.0M), reporting a strong ROE of 37.28% and a net margin of 11.41%.
• Analysts have been upgrading the stock (including Zacks and Piper Sandler) to bullish ratings with a consensus price target of $40, while the shares trade at a PE of 5.34 and a market cap of about $944M.

Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) Chairman Sean Downes sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.60, for a total transaction of $692,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 1,206,788 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $41,754,864.80. This trade represents a 1.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

NYSE UVE opened at $33.71 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $32.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.30. The company has a market capitalization of $944.11 million, a PE ratio of 5.34 and a beta of 0.67. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a 1 year low of $20.83 and a 1 year high of $36.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.52.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.87. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 37.28% and a net margin of 11.41%.The business had revenue of $403.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $372.99 million. As a group, analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Universal Insurance's payout ratio is 10.14%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Insurance

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UVE. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 72.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 39,990 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,052,000 after purchasing an additional 16,820 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 219.5% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 62,898 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,654,000 after purchasing an additional 43,213 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 43.9% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 454,496 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $12,603,000 after purchasing an additional 138,732 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 102.5% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 85,363 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,367,000 after purchasing an additional 43,210 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 6.9% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 681,853 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $18,909,000 after purchasing an additional 44,168 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on UVE shares. Zacks Research raised Universal Insurance from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Universal Insurance from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Universal Insurance from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $40.00.

About Universal Insurance

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc NYSE: UVE is a property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. The company underwrites homeowners and other residential property insurance products to protect against natural catastrophes such as hurricanes, windstorms and fires. It distributes policies primarily through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering coverage for primary residences, secondary homes, condominiums, vacant dwellings and rental properties across its service territory.

In addition to personal lines, Universal provides commercial property and casualty insurance tailored to small businesses and institutional clients.

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