Beazley (LON:BEZ) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Beazley plc (LON:BEZ)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as GBX 1,275 and last traded at GBX 1,272.69, with a volume of 10639234 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 1,246.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BEZ shares. Berenberg Bank dropped their price target on Beazley from GBX 1,150 to GBX 1,100 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Beazley from GBX 1,000 to GBX 1,040 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Citigroup lowered shares of Beazley to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from GBX 1,025 to GBX 1,280 in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Peel Hunt reaffirmed an “add” rating and issued a GBX 900 price target on shares of Beazley in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Beazley from GBX 1,050 to GBX 1,025 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of GBX 1,074.17.

Beazley Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of £7.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.68. The company’s fifty day moving average is GBX 1,049.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is GBX 918.06.

Beazley Company Profile

Beazley plc provides risk insurance and reinsurance solutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, and internationally. It operates through Cyber Risks, Digital, MAP Risks, Property Risks, and Specialty Risks segments. The Cyber Risk segment underwrites cyber and technology risks. The Digital segment underwrites various marine, contingency, and SME liability risks through digital channels, such as e-trading platforms and broker portals. The MAP Risks segment underwrites marine, portfolio underwriting and political, and contingency business.