AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. UBS Group increased their target price on AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, January 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.88.

AXIS Capital Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of AXS stock opened at $91.83 on Monday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $90.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $83.48. 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 has a 1 year low of $59.53 and a 1 year high of $94.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.44, a PEG ratio of 4.01 and a beta of 0.95.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 18.89%. As a group, analysts anticipate that AXIS Capital will post 11.36 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.92%. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is 14.25%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,234,636 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total value of $199,999,922.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,543,170 shares in the company, valued at $406,613,715. The trade was a 32.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AXIS Capital

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. Truist Financial Corp raised its holdings in AXIS Capital by 19.9% in the 2nd quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 9,773 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $690,000 after acquiring an additional 1,620 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in AXIS Capital by 158.0% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,308 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 801 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in AXIS Capital by 92.1% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 21,403 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,704,000 after buying an additional 10,261 shares during the last quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group bought a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at $781,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 424.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 985 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.