Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Acquires Shares of 5,100 AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new stake in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,100 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $452,000.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter worth $247,000. CIBC Asset Management Inc bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the 3rd quarter valued at about $212,000. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its holdings in AXIS Capital by 0.4% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 31,785 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,542,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in AXIS Capital during the third quarter worth about $190,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in AXIS Capital by 24.4% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $129,371,000 after purchasing an additional 318,784 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AXIS Capital

In other AXIS Capital news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total value of $199,999,959.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,404,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $224,786,435.50. The trade was a 47.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital Stock Performance

NYSE AXS opened at $93.66 on Monday. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 52-week low of $60.45 and a 52-week high of $98.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $7.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.16 and a 200-day moving average of $86.57.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 18.89%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is 14.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AXS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on AXIS Capital from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, January 13th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.25.

AXIS Capital 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.