HCI Group (NYSE:HCI) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold

Wall Street Zen cut shares of HCI Group (NYSE:HCI) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Monday.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on HCI. Weiss Ratings cut HCI Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of HCI Group in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded HCI Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.67.

HCI Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HCI opened at $148.87 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $1.90 billion, a PE ratio of 6.54 and a beta of 1.09. HCI Group has a fifty-two week low of $136.37 and a fifty-two week high of $210.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $157.64 and a 200-day moving average of $170.45.

HCI Group (NYSE:HCI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $5.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.26 by $0.19. HCI Group had a return on equity of 30.88% and a net margin of 32.64%.The company had revenue of $242.88 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $245.09 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that HCI Group will post 17.59 earnings per share for the current year.

HCI Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. HCI Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HCI Group

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HCI. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in HCI Group by 175.0% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,985 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,684,000 after purchasing an additional 8,899 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in HCI Group by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 556,670 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $106,842,000 after purchasing an additional 35,029 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of HCI Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,340,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of HCI Group by 28.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 73,685 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $14,142,000 after purchasing an additional 16,287 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of HCI Group by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 807,454 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $154,975,000 after purchasing an additional 105,925 shares during the period. 86.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About HCI Group

HCI Group, Inc (NYSE: HCI) is a holding company whose principal business is the underwriting and issuance of property and casualty insurance through its insurance subsidiaries. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, the company focuses primarily on personal-line insurance products, writing homeowners, condominium, renters and mobile home policies. HCI Group also offers wind-only and flood coverage in coastal regions across the state, providing tailored solutions to both coastal and non-coastal communities.

The company distributes its insurance products through a network of independent agents and brokers, leveraging local market expertise to assess risk and deliver personalized service.