Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) Shares Bought by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC grew its position in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) by 69.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 68,969 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 28,278 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Universal Insurance were worth $1,528,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Universal Insurance by 44.5% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 469,803 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $8,814,000 after acquiring an additional 144,647 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 283.0% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 374,487 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,040,000 after purchasing an additional 276,700 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 22.4% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 347,395 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,698,000 after purchasing an additional 63,582 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 300,379 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,635,000 after purchasing an additional 13,856 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Universal Insurance during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,322,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 10th.

Insider Activity at Universal Insurance

In related news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.21, for a total value of $404,200.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,062,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,468,315.02. This trade represents a 1.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jon Springer sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.63, for a total transaction of $515,750.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 383,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,905,993.64. This represents a 6.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 60,064 shares of company stock worth $1,258,287. 17.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

NYSE:UVE opened at $20.62 on Friday. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $15.78 and a 1-year high of $23.39. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.37. The firm has a market cap of $583.26 million, a PE ratio of 8.38 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.51.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The insurance provider reported ($0.73) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.03) by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $387.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $341.98 million. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 4.82% and a return on equity of 15.43%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.16) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Universal Insurance Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.02%.

About Universal Insurance

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.