AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) Upgraded at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has $89.00 target price on the insurance provider’s stock, up from their previous target price of $78.00.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. UBS Group increased their price target on AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America lifted their price target on AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AXIS Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $98.71.

AXIS Capital Trading Up 1.1 %

AXS opened at $91.80 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $7.68 billion, a PE ratio of 12.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. AXIS Capital has a twelve month low of $53.49 and a twelve month high of $94.54. The company has a fifty day moving average of $85.33 and a 200-day moving average of $78.04.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.16. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 10.82%. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AXIS Capital will post 10.83 EPS for the current year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is 24.41%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AXS. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 48.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 371,557 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,070,000 after buying an additional 121,437 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in AXIS Capital in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,004,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its position in AXIS Capital by 108.7% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 48,828 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,887,000 after purchasing an additional 25,436 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 3.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,267,338 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $100,921,000 after purchasing an additional 43,687 shares during the period. Finally, Vestcor Inc bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the third quarter worth approximately $853,000. 93.44% of the stock is 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.