Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $278.42 and last traded at $277.26, with a volume of 60844 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $274.92.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Travelers Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $291.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $269.00 price target on shares of Travelers Companies and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Travelers Companies to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Travelers Companies from $304.00 to $316.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Travelers Companies from $264.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $284.56.

Travelers Companies Price Performance

The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $263.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $260.26. The stock has a market cap of $62.21 billion, a PE ratio of 12.22, a PEG ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.33 and a quick ratio of 0.33.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The insurance provider reported $6.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.52 by $2.99. The firm had revenue of $11.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.02 billion. Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 18.68% and a net margin of 10.97%.Travelers Companies’s revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.51 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 17.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 10th. Travelers Companies’s payout ratio is presently 19.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jeffrey P. Klenk sold 15,180 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.87, for a total value of $4,142,166.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,657,685.25. This trade represents a 71.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Daniel S. Frey sold 20,286 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.48, for a total value of $5,547,815.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 26,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,365,363.36. This represents a 42.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 175,374 shares of company stock valued at $47,929,912. Company insiders own 1.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Travelers Companies by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,277 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $789,000 after buying an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter worth $276,000. MML Investors Services LLC increased its position in Travelers Companies by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 21,849 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,263,000 after buying an additional 1,284 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. purchased a new position in Travelers Companies during the fourth quarter worth $28,934,000. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its position in Travelers Companies by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 6,810 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,641,000 after buying an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.45% of the company’s stock.

About Travelers Companies

The Travelers Companies, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides a range of commercial and personal property, and casualty insurance products and services to businesses, government units, associations, and individuals in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance, and Personal Insurance.