AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (AXS) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.44 on April 17th

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 20th, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.44 per share by the insurance provider on Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st.

AXIS Capital has increased its dividend payment by an average of 1.4% per year over the last three years. AXIS Capital has a dividend payout ratio of 14.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect AXIS Capital to earn $12.33 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.76 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 14.3%.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXS opened at $91.89 on Friday. AXIS Capital has a fifty-two week low of $60.06 and a fifty-two week high of $94.89. The company’s 50-day moving average is $89.85 and its 200 day moving average is $84.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $7.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.95.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 18.89%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AXIS Capital will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at AXIS Capital

In related news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,234,636 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,922.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,543,170 shares in the company, valued at $406,613,715. The trade was a 32.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on AXS shares. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, January 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 target price for the company. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.88.

AXIS Capital Company Profile

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.