Raymond James Trust N.A. Grows Position in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its holdings in shares of CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) by 4.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,526 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A.’s holdings in CNA Financial were worth $319,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quest Partners LLC raised its position in CNA Financial by 69.3% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 26,737 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 10,940 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP raised its holdings in shares of CNA Financial by 131.8% during the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 35,470 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,736,000 after buying an additional 20,169 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in CNA Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $840,000. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in CNA Financial by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 1,012,492 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $49,551,000 after acquiring an additional 5,539 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its position in CNA Financial by 366.7% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,401,539 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $68,591,000 after acquiring an additional 1,101,217 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Mark Steven James sold 18,547 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.58, for a total value of $938,107.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,159,141.86. This trade represents a 44.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Douglas Worman sold 22,973 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.75, for a total transaction of $1,119,933.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 133,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,521,628.75. This represents a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CNA shares. StockNews.com raised shares of CNA Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of CNA Financial from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on CNA Financial from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th.

CNA Financial Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:CNA opened at $50.25 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $13.61 billion, a PE ratio of 10.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.37 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $47.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. CNA Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $40.92 and a 12-month high of $52.36.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.01. CNA Financial had a net margin of 9.26% and a return on equity of 13.30%. The company had revenue of $3.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.06 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. CNA Financial’s payout ratio is currently 36.67%.

CNA Financial Profile

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.