CWA Asset Management Group LLC Sells 50,225 Shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc $UVE

CWA Asset Management Group LLC lessened its stake in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) by 77.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,251 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 50,225 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC owned about 0.05% of Universal Insurance worth $482,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in Universal Insurance in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. raised 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 valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 577 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 390.0% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,656 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 2,114 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 11.3% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,249 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $146,000 after buying an additional 534 shares during the period. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Universal Insurance during the 2nd quarter worth $202,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Universal Insurance Stock Performance

Shares of Universal Insurance stock opened at $34.90 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $977.41 million, a PE ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.20. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a one year low of $20.83 and a one year high of $36.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.52.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The insurance provider reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.87. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 11.41% and a return on equity of 37.28%. The business had revenue of $403.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $372.99 million. Research analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Insurance

In other Universal Insurance news, Director Richard D. Peterson sold 1,855 shares of Universal Insurance stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.61, for a total value of $62,346.55. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 8,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $279,601.59. The trade was a 18.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen Donaghy sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.07, for a total value of $851,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 679,961 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,166,271.27. The trade was a 3.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 17.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UVE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Universal Insurance from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 27th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Universal Insurance from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $40.00.

About Universal Insurance

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc (NYSE: UVE) is a property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. The company underwrites homeowners and other residential property insurance products to protect against natural catastrophes such as hurricanes, windstorms and fires. It distributes policies primarily through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering coverage for primary residences, secondary homes, condominiums, vacant dwellings and rental properties across its service territory.

In addition to personal lines, Universal provides commercial property and casualty insurance tailored to small businesses and institutional clients.