5,778 Shares in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) Acquired by Captrust Financial Advisors

Captrust Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 5,778 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $283,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 366.7% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,401,539 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $68,591,000 after buying an additional 1,101,217 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in CNA Financial by 97.9% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,152,528 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $51,760,000 after acquiring an additional 570,172 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of CNA Financial by 45.5% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,068,956 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $49,247,000 after purchasing an additional 334,463 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 0.6% during the third quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 1,012,492 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $49,551,000 after purchasing an additional 5,539 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in CNA Financial by 570.6% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 529,862 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $24,411,000 after purchasing an additional 450,843 shares during the last quarter. 98.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Mark Steven James sold 18,547 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.58, for a total transaction of $938,107.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,917 shares in the company, valued at $1,159,141.86. This represents a 44.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Douglas Worman sold 22,973 shares of CNA Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.75, for a total value of $1,119,933.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 133,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,521,628.75. This represents a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

CNA Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CNA opened at $48.85 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $49.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.23 billion, a PE ratio of 10.18, a P/E/G ratio of 6.20 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.26 and a quick ratio of 0.26. CNA Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $40.92 and a fifty-two week high of $52.36.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.15 billion. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 13.30% and a net margin of 9.26%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.06 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. CNA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on CNA Financial from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of CNA Financial from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of CNA Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th.

CNA Financial Profile

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.