Reinsurance Group of America (NYSE:RGA) Upgraded at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Reinsurance Group of America (NYSE:RGA) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a report released on Monday morning, Marketbeat reports. They currently have $295.00 price objective on the insurance provider’s stock.

RGA has been the topic of several other reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Reinsurance Group of America in a research note on Friday, August 7th. UBS Group upgraded Reinsurance Group of America from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Reinsurance Group of America from $278.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Reinsurance Group of America from $286.00 to $293.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Reinsurance Group of America from $212.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Reinsurance Group of America currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $267.56.

Reinsurance Group of America Stock Down 2.6%

Reinsurance Group of America stock opened at $246.49 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $245.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $223.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Reinsurance Group of America has a twelve month low of $178.21 and a twelve month high of $257.81. The company has a market capitalization of $16.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.83 and a beta of 0.47.

Reinsurance Group of America (NYSE:RGA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The insurance provider reported $8.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.50 by $2.39. Reinsurance Group of America had a net margin of 5.81% and a return on equity of 14.78%. The company had revenue of $6.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.72 EPS. Reinsurance Group of America’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Reinsurance Group of America will post 29.71 EPS for the current year.

Reinsurance Group of America Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 18th were given a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 18th. This is a boost from Reinsurance Group of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Reinsurance Group of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.22%.

Insider Activity at Reinsurance Group of America

In other news, EVP Jonathan Porter sold 8,589 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.30, for a total value of $2,115,470.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,666,175.50. This represents a 36.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Reinsurance Group of America during the fourth quarter valued at about $173,767,000. SEB Asset Management AB bought a new position in shares of Reinsurance Group of America during the first quarter valued at about $81,533,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Reinsurance Group of America in the second quarter worth about $82,836,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Reinsurance Group of America by 2,626.6% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 195,794 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $39,973,000 after acquiring an additional 188,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its stake in shares of Reinsurance Group of America by 965.2% in the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 179,440 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $38,158,000 after acquiring an additional 162,594 shares during the last quarter. 95.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Reinsurance Group of America

Reinsurance Group of America, Incorporated (NYSE:RGA) is a global provider of life and health reinsurance. The company helps insurance organizations manage mortality, longevity, morbidity and other insurance risks by assuming portions of their business and providing capital, risk-management expertise and specialized underwriting support.

RGA offers traditional reinsurance and financial solutions for individual life insurance, group life and health coverage, retirement and annuity products, long-term care and disability insurance.