Headlands Technologies LLC Reduces Position in Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK)

Headlands Technologies LLC trimmed its position in shares of Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK) by 41.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,229 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,937 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC’s holdings in Verisk Analytics were worth $1,140,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Verisk Analytics in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Verisk Analytics in the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. 90.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Verisk Analytics Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ VRSK opened at $271.63 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $271.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $253.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.86. Verisk Analytics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $215.32 and a 12-month high of $287.13.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $716.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $722.45 million. Verisk Analytics had a net margin of 32.03% and a return on equity of 252.11%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.51 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Verisk Analytics, Inc. will post 6.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verisk Analytics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Sunday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. Verisk Analytics’s payout ratio is 29.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on VRSK shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Verisk Analytics from $243.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $268.00 price target on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Verisk Analytics from $280.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Verisk Analytics from $268.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Verisk Analytics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $273.54.

Insider Activity at Verisk Analytics

In related news, CFO Elizabeth Mann sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.31, for a total transaction of $52,462.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,608 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,356,444.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Verisk Analytics news, CFO Elizabeth Mann sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.31, for a total value of $52,462.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,608 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,356,444.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kathy Card Beckles sold 326 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.22, for a total transaction of $88,743.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,470 shares in the company, valued at $2,033,483.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 726 shares of company stock worth $196,682. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Verisk Analytics Profile

Verisk Analytics, Inc provides data analytics and technology solutions to the insurance markets in the United States and internationally. It offers policy language, prospective loss costs, policy writing and rating rules, and various underwriting solutions for risk selection and segmentation, pricing, and workflow optimization; property- and auto- specific rating and underwriting information solutions that allows clients to understand, quantify, underwrite, mitigate, and avoid potential loss for risks; catastrophe modeling solutions, which enables companies to identify, quantify, and plan for the financial consequences of catastrophes for use by insurers, reinsurers, intermediaries, financial institutions, and governments.