AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) Coverage Initiated at BMO Capital Markets

BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a market perform rating and a $93.00 price target on the insurance provider’s stock.

AXS has been the subject of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised AXIS Capital from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $78.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America raised their target price on 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 raised their target price on AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. TD Cowen raised their target price on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $99.75.

AXIS Capital Stock Performance

Shares of AXS opened at $85.84 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $7.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.91, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $88.65 and a 200 day moving average of $80.64. AXIS Capital has a 12 month low of $53.88 and a 12 month high of $94.89.

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

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is 24.41%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AXIS Capital

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 48.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 371,557 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,070,000 after purchasing an additional 121,437 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the 3rd quarter worth about $453,000. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the 3rd quarter worth about $638,000. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the 3rd quarter worth about $507,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $129,371,000 after acquiring an additional 318,784 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.