Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK) shares gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $191.82, but opened at $180.90. Verisk Analytics shares last traded at $182.7330, with a volume of 275,829 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Verisk Analytics in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Verisk Analytics from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Verisk Analytics from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Verisk Analytics from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on Verisk Analytics from $225.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.27.

Verisk Analytics Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $187.71 and a 200-day moving average of $187.20. The stock has a market cap of $23.55 billion, a PE ratio of 27.80, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.42, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.05. Verisk Analytics had a negative return on equity of 239.55% and a net margin of 28.24%.The company had revenue of $806.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $804.02 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.88 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Verisk Analytics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.450-7.750 EPS. Research analysts predict that Verisk Analytics, Inc. will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Verisk Analytics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Verisk Analytics’s payout ratio is 30.72%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Lee Shavel sold 3,535 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.94, for a total transaction of $696,182.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 98,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,396,620.60. This trade represents a 3.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Kathy Card Beckles sold 2,020 shares of Verisk Analytics stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.49, for a total transaction of $394,889.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 11,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,251,262.84. This represents a 14.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 24,562 shares of company stock valued at $4,566,783 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.52% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Verisk Analytics

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in VRSK. Callan Family Office LLC bought a new position in Verisk Analytics during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,343,000. Shelter Mutual Insurance Co purchased a new position in Verisk Analytics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $7,127,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Verisk Analytics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $56,000. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in Verisk Analytics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $163,000. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG purchased a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $895,000. 90.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Verisk Analytics Company Profile

Verisk Analytics, Inc (NASDAQ: VRSK) is a data analytics and decision?support provider that helps organizations assess and manage risk. The company supplies data, predictive models and software to customers in insurance, reinsurance, financial services, government, energy and other commercial markets. Its offerings are designed to support underwriting, pricing, claims management, catastrophe modeling, fraud detection and regulatory compliance, enabling clients to make more informed operational and strategic decisions.

Verisk’s product portfolio combines large proprietary datasets with analytics platforms and industry?specific applications.