Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS Shares Sold by Vest Financial LLC

Vest Financial LLC cut its position in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 29.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 27,777 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 11,452 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Axis Capital were worth $2,975,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Axis Capital during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Axis Capital in the third quarter worth about $43,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Axis Capital in the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Axis Capital in the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Axis Capital in the third quarter worth about $62,000. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Axis Capital Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of NYSE AXS opened at $97.93 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $7.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.63. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $88.07 and a 12-month high of $110.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $101.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $101.32.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.73 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 18.72%. Axis Capital’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.17 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 13.34 EPS for the current year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Axis Capital’s payout ratio is presently 14.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $122.00 price objective on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Axis Capital from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Axis Capital from $121.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Axis Capital from $115.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.80.

About Axis Capital

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.