Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Sunday.

Universal Insurance Trading Up 1.1 %

UVE opened at $21.72 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $614.37 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.83 and a beta of 0.90. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $20.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.86. Universal Insurance has a one year low of $15.63 and a one year high of $23.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.51.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The insurance provider reported ($0.73) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.03) by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $387.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $341.98 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 4.82%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.16) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Universal Insurance will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Universal Insurance news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.21, for a total transaction of $404,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 1,062,262 shares in the company, valued at $21,468,315.02. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Jon Springer sold 35,173 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.53, for a total transaction of $722,101.69. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 473,899 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,729,146.47. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.21, for a total value of $404,200.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 1,062,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,468,315.02. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 75,173 shares of company stock worth $1,575,702 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 17.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Insurance

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 1,737,233 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $35,301,000 after acquiring an additional 35,045 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,544,506 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,384,000 after acquiring an additional 41,425 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 44.5% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 469,803 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,814,000 after acquiring an additional 144,647 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 283.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 374,487 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,040,000 after acquiring an additional 276,700 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management increased its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 313,902 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $6,378,000 after acquiring an additional 19,900 shares during the period. 66.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.