9,274 Shares in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) Bought by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 9,274 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $206,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of UVE. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 44.5% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 469,803 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,814,000 after buying an additional 144,647 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in Universal Insurance by 283.0% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 374,487 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,040,000 after acquiring an additional 276,700 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Universal Insurance by 22.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 347,395 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,698,000 after acquiring an additional 63,582 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 300,379 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,635,000 after acquiring an additional 13,856 shares during the period. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,322,000. 66.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Universal Insurance

In other Universal Insurance news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 15,064 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.46, for a total value of $338,337.44. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,047,198 shares in the company, valued at $23,520,067.08. The trade was a 1.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 55,064 shares of company stock valued at $1,191,937. 17.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

NYSE UVE opened at $21.13 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $597.68 million, a P/E ratio of 8.59 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $15.78 and a twelve month high of $23.39. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $21.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.28.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The insurance provider reported ($0.73) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.03) by $0.30. The business had revenue of $387.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $341.98 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 4.82%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.16) EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 10th.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.