RLI (NYSE:RLI) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of RLI (NYSE:RLI) in a research report report published on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm issued an outperform rating and a $182.00 price target on the insurance provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on RLI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of RLI from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Compass Point lowered their price objective on shares of RLI from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on RLI from $170.00 to $165.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a sector perform rating and set a $162.00 price target on shares of RLI in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a market perform rating on shares of RLI in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $173.80.

RLI Stock Performance

RLI stock opened at $156.25 on Wednesday. RLI has a one year low of $125.77 and a one year high of $160.47. The firm has a market cap of $7.15 billion, a PE ratio of 21.58 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $151.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $146.02.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.37. The company had revenue of $416.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $561.60 million. RLI had a return on equity of 18.33% and a net margin of 20.78%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.16 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that RLI will post 6.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLI Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. RLI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.02%.

Institutional Trading of RLI

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RLI. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in RLI by 620.0% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 180 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of RLI by 3.4% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,875 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $601,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of RLI by 42.5% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 785 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $122,000 after buying an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in RLI by 38.2% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 10,130 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,570,000 after acquiring an additional 2,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in RLI by 327.3% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,593 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $712,000 after acquiring an additional 3,518 shares during the last quarter. 77.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About RLI

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.