Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Invests $55,000 in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,000 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $55,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the 4th quarter worth $43,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in AXIS Capital during the third quarter worth about $51,000. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 1,787.0% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,302 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 1,233 shares during the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 2,642.2% in the 3rd quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 2,989 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $168,000 after acquiring an additional 2,880 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $181,000. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AXIS Capital Trading Down 2.0 %

AXS opened at $60.64 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.08, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.80. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $62.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.56. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12 month low of $51.61 and a 12 month high of $65.86.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The insurance provider reported $2.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.25) by $4.19. The business had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 6.67%. Sell-side analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.90%. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is 43.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on AXS. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. StockNews.com downgraded AXIS Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on AXIS Capital from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AXIS Capital currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.33.

Insider Transactions at AXIS Capital

In other AXIS Capital news, Director Stanley A. Galanski bought 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $58.45 per share, with a total value of $409,150.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 9,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $570,647.35. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

About AXIS Capital

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.