41,733 Shares in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) Bought by Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C

Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C purchased a new position in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 41,733 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $783,000. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C owned approximately 0.14% of Universal Insurance as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Occidental Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Universal Insurance during the second quarter worth $196,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Universal Insurance by 17.4% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 12,374 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 1,833 shares in the last quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC purchased a new position in Universal Insurance during the first quarter valued at $289,000. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System purchased a new position in Universal Insurance during the first quarter valued at $326,000. Finally, Bailard Inc. lifted its holdings in Universal Insurance by 33.3% during the second quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 16,800 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 4,200 shares in the last quarter. 66.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Universal Insurance

In other news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.47, for a total value of $449,400.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,082,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,318,427.14. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.47, for a total transaction of $449,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 1,082,262 shares in the company, valued at $24,318,427.14. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jon Springer sold 35,173 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.53, for a total transaction of $722,101.69. Following the sale, the director now owns 473,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,729,146.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 75,173 shares of company stock valued at $1,571,502. Corporate insiders own 17.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

UVE opened at $22.25 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $20.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $19.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market cap of $633.68 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.73 and a beta of 0.89. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $13.10 and a 52-week high of $23.27.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The insurance provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $380.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $340.09 million. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 5.60% and a return on equity of 21.14%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.87 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.10%.

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.