Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 2,708 Shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE) by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,255 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 2,708 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Universal Insurance were worth $493,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP raised its stake in Universal Insurance by 424.4% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,395 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,129 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 240.1% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,881 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 1,328 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 40.1% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,524 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 723 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance during the 3rd quarter worth $202,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new position in Universal Insurance in the third quarter worth $206,000. 66.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Universal Insurance

In related news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.51, for a total transaction of $1,025,500.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 985,320 shares in the company, valued at $20,208,913.20. This represents a 4.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jon Springer sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.63, for a total value 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 trade represents a 6.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 110,064 shares of company stock valued at $2,283,787 in the last ninety days. 17.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

Shares of UVE stock opened at $19.98 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.51. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $15.78 and a fifty-two week high of $23.39. The company has a market capitalization of $565.15 million, a P/E ratio of 8.12 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $21.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.46.

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

Universal Insurance Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.60%. Universal Insurance’s payout ratio is 26.02%.

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.