South Dakota Investment Council Acquires 18,766 Shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

South Dakota Investment Council increased its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 45.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 59,837 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 18,766 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $5,303,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital during the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.0% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 28.5% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 833 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital during the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 424.6% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $97,000 after acquiring an additional 985 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AXS. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, January 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.88.

AXIS Capital Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of AXS opened at $91.89 on Monday. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a one year low of $60.06 and a one year high of $94.89. The company has a market cap of $7.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.44, a P/E/G ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $89.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.59.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 18.89%. Research analysts forecast that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.92%. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.25%.

Insider Transactions at AXIS Capital

In other news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,234,636 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were 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 approximately $406,613,715. This represents a 32.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital 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.