Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $88.18 Million in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 994,978 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $88,175,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital in the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital in the 4th quarter valued at $53,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in AXIS Capital by 24.0% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital in the 4th quarter valued at $60,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital in the 4th quarter valued at $70,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at AXIS Capital

In related news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total value of $199,999,959.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 2,404,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $224,786,435.50. The trade was a 47.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, January 13th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price objective on the stock. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AXIS Capital currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.88.

AXIS Capital Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE AXS opened at $92.01 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.45, a PEG ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.91. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a one year low of $60.45 and a one year high of $98.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The business’s fifty day moving average is $90.83 and its 200-day moving average is $86.04.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 18.16%. Equities research analysts predict that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.25%.

AXIS Capital Profile

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism.