Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) Hits New 12-Month High - Here's What Happened

Shares of Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $318.03 and last traded at $313.60, with a volume of 77689 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $316.99.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on VRSK. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Verisk Analytics in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $280.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Verisk Analytics from $320.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Verisk Analytics from $325.00 to $321.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Verisk Analytics from $295.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Verisk Analytics from $280.00 to $297.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verisk Analytics presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $302.40.

Verisk Analytics Price Performance

The stock's fifty day moving average is $300.68 and its 200-day moving average is $291.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.71 billion, a PE ratio of 49.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.36, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The business services provider reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.05. Verisk Analytics had a net margin of 32.65% and a return on equity of 274.13%. The firm had revenue of $753.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $750.31 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Verisk Analytics, Inc. will post 6.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Verisk Analytics Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Verisk Analytics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.35%.

Verisk Analytics declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Verisk Analytics

In other Verisk Analytics news, Director Bruce Edward Hansen sold 1,179 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.86, for a total transaction of $337,028.94. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,786 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,940,865.96. This trade represents a 7.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nicholas Daffan sold 5,419 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $318.10, for a total transaction of $1,723,783.90. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 56,701 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,036,588.10. The trade was a 8.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,603 shares of company stock valued at $3,904,741 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Verisk Analytics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Verisk Analytics by 468.8% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 91 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. purchased a new position in Verisk Analytics during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 90.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Verisk Analytics Company Profile

Verisk Analytics, Inc provides data analytics and technology solutions to the insurance markets in the United States and internationally. It offers policy language, prospective loss costs, policy writing and rating rules, and various underwriting solutions for risk selection and segmentation, pricing, and workflow optimization; property- and auto- specific rating and underwriting information solutions that allows clients to understand, quantify, underwrite, mitigate, and avoid potential loss for risks; catastrophe modeling solutions, which enables companies to identify, quantify, and plan for the financial consequences of catastrophes for use by insurers, reinsurers, intermediaries, financial institutions, and governments.