Private Advisory Group LLC Acquires New Holdings in CNA Financial Corporation $CNA

Private Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in CNA Financial Corporation (NYSE:CNA) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 161,642 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,857,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CNA. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in shares of CNA Financial by 8,100.7% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 484,580 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $23,134,000 after acquiring an additional 478,671 shares during the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of CNA Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,576,000. UBS Group AG increased its holdings in CNA Financial by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 867,787 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $41,428,000 after purchasing an additional 178,314 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in CNA Financial by 162.3% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 54,300 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,493,000 after purchasing an additional 33,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in CNA Financial by 34.6% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,101,092 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $96,482,000 after purchasing an additional 540,448 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

CNA Financial Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of CNA opened at $50.99 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.80 billion, a PE ratio of 11.21, a P/E/G ratio of 6.89 and a beta of 0.28. CNA Financial Corporation has a 1 year low of $41.53 and a 1 year high of $55.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.71.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The insurance provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $3.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. CNA Financial had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 11.34%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.23 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that CNA Financial Corporation will post 4.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. CNA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 42.20%.

Insider Activity at CNA Financial

In other news, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 22,656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.09, for a total transaction of $1,202,807.04. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 68,032 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,611,818.88. This represents a 24.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark Steven James sold 8,273 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.15, for a total value of $439,709.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 26,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,405,604.90. The trade was a 23.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CNA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Zacks Research upgraded CNA Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings raised CNA Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, CNA Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

CNA Financial Profile

CNA Financial Corporation is a leading U.S.-based commercial property and casualty insurance company offering a broad portfolio of risk management and insurance solutions. The company underwrites coverage for businesses of all sizes across a variety of industry sectors, including manufacturing, healthcare, energy, technology, construction and real estate. In addition to core property and casualty insurance, CNA delivers specialized products such as surety bonds, professional liability, environmental liability and commercial auto coverage.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, CNA traces its origins to the founding of Continental Casualty Company in 1897.