Fifth Third Bancorp Cuts Stake in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Fifth Third Bancorp cut its position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 16.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,720 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 549 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $241,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in AXIS Capital in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 32.6% during the second quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 602 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in AXIS Capital by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 424.6% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 985 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the third quarter valued at approximately $99,000. 93.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AXIS Capital Stock Down 1.9 %

AXIS Capital stock opened at $90.98 on Friday. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a twelve month low of $55.56 and a twelve month high of $94.89. The stock has a market cap of $7.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $90.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $82.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 18.16%. As a group, analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.45 EPS for the current year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AXS. UBS Group boosted 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com downgraded AXIS Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $99.25.

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.