Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Buys 2,224 Shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,843 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,224 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $1,847,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new stake in AXIS Capital in the fourth quarter worth about $53,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in AXIS Capital by 24.0% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in AXIS Capital in the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. bought a new stake in AXIS Capital in the fourth quarter worth about $70,000. Institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AXIS Capital has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.25.

Insider Activity at AXIS Capital

In related news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,959.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,404,133 shares in the company, valued at $224,786,435.50. The trade was a 47.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AXIS Capital Trading Up 1.9 %

NYSE:AXS opened at $95.61 on Tuesday. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12 month low of $60.45 and a 12 month high of $98.11. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $91.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $86.68. 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 $7.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.74, a PEG ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.91.

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

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.25%.

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.