Fidelis Insurance Holdings Limited (NYSE:FIHL) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Fidelis Insurance Holdings Limited (NYSE:FIHL) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,447,331 shares, an increase of 38.4% from the February 26th total of 1,045,903 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 525,644 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of FIHL. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Fidelis Insurance by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 95,806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,875,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fidelis Insurance by 15.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 6,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,000 after acquiring an additional 810 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC boosted its position in shares of Fidelis Insurance by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 33,472 shares of the company’s stock worth $506,000 after purchasing an additional 882 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its position in shares of Fidelis Insurance by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 72,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,310,000 after purchasing an additional 1,226 shares during the period. Finally, Optimize Financial Inc increased its holdings in Fidelis Insurance by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Optimize Financial Inc now owns 25,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $470,000 after purchasing an additional 1,344 shares during the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fidelis Insurance Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FIHL opened at $19.15 on Tuesday. Fidelis Insurance has a twelve month low of $14.67 and a twelve month high of $20.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market cap of $1.85 billion, a PE ratio of 8.66 and a beta of 0.25. The company’s 50 day moving average is $19.17 and its 200 day moving average is $18.76.

Fidelis Insurance (NYSE:FIHL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $600.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $756.14 million. Fidelis Insurance had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 8.62%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Fidelis Insurance will post 3.12 EPS for the current year.

Fidelis Insurance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Fidelis Insurance’s payout ratio is currently 27.15%.

Fidelis Insurance declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Friday, February 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $400.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 18% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $17.50 target price on shares of Fidelis Insurance in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Evercore set a $21.00 price target on shares of Fidelis Insurance in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings raised Fidelis Insurance from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $21.00 price objective (up from $19.00) on shares of Fidelis Insurance in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Fidelis Insurance from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $22.36.

Fidelis Insurance Company Profile

Fidelis Insurance Holdings Ltd is a Bermuda‐incorporated specialty insurer and reinsurer that underwrites a broad range of liability and property risks. Founded in 2015, the company completed its initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange in 2016 under the ticker FIHL. Fidelis focuses on providing tailored solutions for complex risks that traditional insurers may find difficult to accommodate, leveraging data analytics and underwriting expertise to structure policies across diverse industry segments.

The company’s product portfolio spans casualty lines—including general liability, excess and umbrella, professional indemnity, and management liability—alongside property, marine, energy and specialty programs.