Arch Capital Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:ACGL) Short Interest Update

Arch Capital Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:ACGL) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,390,000 shares, an increase of 6.9% from the November 30th total of 5,040,000 shares. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,960,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on ACGL. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Arch Capital Group from $98.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Arch Capital Group from $114.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Arch Capital Group from $118.00 to $109.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Arch Capital Group in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $120.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Arch Capital Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $118.38.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arch Capital Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in Arch Capital Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in Arch Capital Group by 38.7% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 141,134 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $14,239,000 after buying an additional 39,368 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp purchased a new position in Arch Capital Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $6,112,000. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Arch Capital Group by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,285 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $634,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the period. Finally, Laidlaw Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arch Capital Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $212,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.07% of the company’s stock.

Arch Capital Group Stock Performance

Arch Capital Group stock opened at $91.89 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $98.25 and its 200 day moving average is $102.43. The company has a market capitalization of $34.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.17, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.62. Arch Capital Group has a twelve month low of $74.28 and a twelve month high of $116.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Arch Capital Group (NASDAQ:ACGL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.05 billion. Arch Capital Group had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 33.86%. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.31 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Arch Capital Group will post 8.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arch Capital Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $5.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th.

Arch Capital Group Company Profile

Arch Capital Group Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance, reinsurance, and mortgage insurance products worldwide. The company's Insurance segment offers primary and excess casualty coverages; loss sensitive primary casualty insurance programs; directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions liability, employment practices and fiduciary liability, crime, professional indemnity, and other financial related coverages; medical professional and general liability insurance coverages; and workers' compensation and umbrella liability, as well as commercial automobile and inland marine products.