Moran Wealth Management LLC Has $9.14 Million Holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Moran Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 0.3% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 88,018 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Axis Capital were worth $9,138,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Axis Capital by 1,542.9% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 575 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in Axis Capital by 34.0% during the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $106,000 after buying an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in Axis Capital by 36.9% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,184 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $119,000 after buying an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in Axis Capital by 34.3% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,628 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $163,000 after buying an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Axis Capital by 14.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,853 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $186,000 after buying an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Axis Capital

In related news, insider Daniel J. Draper sold 4,305 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.57, for a total value of $420,038.85. Following the transaction, the insider owned 16,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,587,366.33. This represents a 20.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Henry B. Smith sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.67, for a total transaction of $345,345.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 47,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,666,597.65. This trade represents a 6.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 12,205 shares of company stock worth $1,188,048. 0.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on AXS shares. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $123.00 price target on shares of Axis Capital and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Axis Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $118.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $115.29.

Axis Capital Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of AXS stock opened at $97.47 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $96.65 and its 200-day moving average is $97.95. The stock has a market cap of $7.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.37, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.73. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 52-week low of $77.21 and a 52-week high of $107.19.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.68 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 18.77%. Axis Capital’s quarterly revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.93 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.92%.

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.