Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Boosts Stock Position in The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co grew its stake in shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) by 10.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 53,447 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,200 shares during the period. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Travelers Companies were worth $15,503,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 1,820.0% during the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 134.1% during the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 96 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. eCIO Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Optima Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.45% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Travelers Companies

In other Travelers Companies news, EVP Jeffrey P. Klenk sold 6,414 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.06, for a total transaction of $1,956,654.84. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,853,239.50. This trade represents a 51.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 1,557 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.64, for a total value of $483,666.48. Following the sale, the insider owned 259,590 shares in the company, valued at $80,639,037.60. The trade was a 0.60% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 103,706 shares of company stock valued at $30,991,761. 1.39% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Travelers Companies Trading Down 1.1%

Travelers Companies stock opened at $301.49 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $64.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.97, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.50. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $249.19 and a fifty-two week high of $313.12. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $300.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $289.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.35.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The insurance provider reported $7.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.80 by $0.91. The firm had revenue of $11.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.11 billion. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 24.06%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.91 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 28.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, January 21st that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the insurance provider to reacquire up to 8.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 10th. This is a positive change from Travelers Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Travelers Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on TRV. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Travelers Companies from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $340.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Argus raised shares of Travelers Companies to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $297.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Travelers Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $309.13.

About Travelers Companies

The Travelers Companies, Inc (NYSE: TRV) is a leading provider of property and casualty insurance products and services. The company underwrites a broad range of commercial and personal insurance lines, offering coverage designed to protect individuals, small and midsize businesses, and large corporate clients against property loss, liability, and other operational risks. Travelers is known for combining underwriting, claims management and risk control services to help clients prevent losses and recover when incidents occur.

On the commercial side, Travelers writes primary and specialty coverages including property, general liability, commercial auto, workers’ compensation, professional and management liability, surety and inland marine.