New York State Teachers Retirement System Takes Position in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

New York State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new stake in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,351 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $99,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,112 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Mariner LLC boosted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 8,102 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $319,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 25.7% in the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,732 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 354 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA boosted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA now owns 7,349 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $330,000 after buying an additional 379 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor Group Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 11,416 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $483,000 after buying an additional 385 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

CNA Financial Price Performance

CNA stock opened at $44.44 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. CNA Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $36.41 and a fifty-two week high of $47.37. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $44.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.59. The stock has a market cap of $12.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.03, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.64.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.23. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 14.33% and a net margin of 9.06%. The company had revenue of $3.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.01 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that CNA Financial Co. will post 5.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a None dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a $2.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a yield of 3.8%. This is a boost from CNA Financial’s previous None dividend of $1.62. CNA Financial’s payout ratio is currently 39.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on CNA. StockNews.com upgraded CNA Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Bank of America cut CNA Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $39.00 to $43.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on CNA Financial from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th.

About CNA Financial

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.