Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Earns Buy (B) Rating from Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Universal Insurance has received a "buy (B)" rating from Weiss Ratings and a "strong-buy" upgrade from Wall Street Zen, indicating positive sentiment from analysts.
• The stock is currently trading at $30.14 with a market cap of $853.59 million, reflecting significant gains from a 12-month low of $16.94.
• In recent insider activity, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares, reducing his position in the company by 1.51% while 66.61% of the shares are owned by institutional investors.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy (b)" rating reissued by stock analysts at Weiss Ratings in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Universal Insurance from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Universal Insurance presently has an average rating of "Buy".

Universal Insurance Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE UVE traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $30.14. 115,675 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 207,593. The firm has a market cap of $853.59 million, a P/E ratio of 13.17 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.58. Universal Insurance has a 12-month low of $16.94 and a 12-month high of $30.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $24.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.99.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The insurance provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.14. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 4.24% and a return on equity of 15.37%. The business had revenue of $596.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $359.98 million. As a group, analysts expect that Universal Insurance will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Universal Insurance

In other news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.35, for a total transaction of $507,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 1,303,512 shares in the company, valued at $33,044,029.20. This trade represents a 1.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 17.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Universal Insurance

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 171.5% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 343,786 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $8,148,000 after acquiring an additional 217,184 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 43.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 454,496 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $12,603,000 after acquiring an additional 138,732 shares during the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 1,836,718 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $43,530,000 after acquiring an additional 116,199 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 56.3% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 281,314 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $7,801,000 after acquiring an additional 101,333 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Universal Insurance in the 1st quarter valued at $2,197,000. 66.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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