Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Trims Stock Position in Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. decreased its position in Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK – Get Rating) by 19.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,825 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,443 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Verisk Analytics were worth $1,733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fiduciary Alliance LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Verisk Analytics in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Capital Directions Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Verisk Analytics during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. bought a new position in Verisk Analytics during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its position in Verisk Analytics by 606.5% during the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 219 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Verisk Analytics by 36.3% in the 3rd quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 233 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.89% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VRSK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America upgraded shares of Verisk Analytics from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $167.00 to $243.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 4th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Verisk Analytics in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. 888 restated a “maintains” rating on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research note on Thursday, May 4th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Verisk Analytics from $210.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Verisk Analytics from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verisk Analytics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.50.

Verisk Analytics Stock Up 0.9 %

VRSK stock opened at $218.68 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.66 billion, a PE ratio of 68.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 0.86. Verisk Analytics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $156.05 and a 52 week high of $222.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 35.65. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $198.62 and a 200 day moving average of $185.85.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 3rd. The business services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.10. Verisk Analytics had a net margin of 18.19% and a return on equity of 57.53%. The business had revenue of $651.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $633.56 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.34 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Verisk Analytics, Inc. will post 5.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Verisk Analytics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. Verisk Analytics’s payout ratio is 42.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Verisk Analytics news, Director Wendy E. Lane purchased 1,037 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $209.78 per share, for a total transaction of $217,541.86. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,057 shares in the company, valued at $431,517.46. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CAO David J. Grover sold 4,411 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.65, for a total transaction of $796,847.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,815 shares in the company, valued at $2,134,379.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Wendy E. Lane purchased 1,037 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $209.78 per share, for a total transaction of $217,541.86. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $431,517.46. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 16,056 shares of company stock valued at $2,904,589 over the last quarter. 1.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Verisk Analytics Profile

(Get Rating)

Verisk Analytics, Inc engages in the provision of data analytics services. It serves insurance customers and focuses on the prediction of loss, the selection and pricing of risk, and compliance. The company was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Jersey City, NJ.