State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Reduces Stock Position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D decreased its position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 12.6% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 25,888 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 3,722 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $2,061,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at about $99,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 1,870.8% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 58,376 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,647,000 after acquiring an additional 55,414 shares in the last quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in AXIS Capital by 5.7% in the third quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC now owns 49,287 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,924,000 after acquiring an additional 2,668 shares during the period. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC boosted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 3.8% in the third quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 4,971 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $396,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in AXIS Capital by 35.3% during the 3rd quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,203 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $909,000 after purchasing an additional 2,922 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Friday, October 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $118.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on AXIS Capital from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America raised their price objective on AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AXIS Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.86.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

AXS opened at $86.73 on Friday. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 1 year low of $53.48 and a 1 year high of $86.92. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $80.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $75.02. The firm has a market cap of $7.25 billion, a PE ratio of 12.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.57 billion. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 10.82%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.34 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.41%.

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.