Donald Smith & CO. Inc. Sells 272,250 Shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc $UVE

Donald Smith & CO. Inc. cut its holdings in Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) by 14.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,564,468 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 272,250 shares during the quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. owned about 5.52% of Universal Insurance worth $43,383,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UVE. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance in the first quarter valued at about $59,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Universal Insurance during the first quarter worth approximately $64,000. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its position in Universal Insurance by 28.6% during the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 2,597 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 577 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in Universal Insurance by 57.5% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 5,829 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 80.2% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,367 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $177,000 after buying an additional 2,833 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Universal Insurance from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has issued a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy”.

Universal Insurance Stock Down 2.9%

Shares of NYSE:UVE opened at $31.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.55. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a 52-week low of $18.72 and a 52-week high of $35.84. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $27.39. The firm has a market cap of $875.13 million, a P/E ratio of 7.36 and a beta of 0.74.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $400.03 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $366.36 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 28.25% and a net margin of 7.74%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. Universal Insurance’s payout ratio is 15.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Universal Insurance news, Director Jon Springer sold 35,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.41, for a total transaction of $1,113,013.35. Following the sale, the director directly owned 271,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,531,835.48. This represents a 11.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.46, for a total value of $669,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 1,263,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,277,111.52. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 99,743 shares of company stock worth $3,249,082 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 16.60% of the company’s stock.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.