Stifel Financial Corp Reduces Holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Stifel Financial Corp lowered its position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 31,859 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 605 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $2,536,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AXS. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in AXIS Capital by 8,717.0% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,361,250 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $96,172,000 after purchasing an additional 1,345,811 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $129,371,000 after acquiring an additional 318,784 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 1,644.8% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 240,754 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $17,009,000 after acquiring an additional 226,956 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,583,700 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $182,538,000 after acquiring an additional 213,559 shares during the period. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its position in AXIS Capital by 12.5% in the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,417,464 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $100,144,000 after acquiring an additional 157,110 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital Stock Performance

Shares of AXS stock opened at $88.20 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $7.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.23, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.94. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 52-week low of $53.49 and a 52-week high of $94.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company’s 50 day moving average is $85.84 and its 200 day moving average is $78.40.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.16. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 10.82%. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.34 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of AXIS Capital from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $78.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $98.71.

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.