AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Receives $107.75 Average PT from Analysts

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the ten ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $107.75.

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a report on Wednesday.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

Shares of AXIS Capital stock opened at $100.95 on Friday. AXIS Capital has a twelve month low of $68.02 and a twelve month high of $102.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.82.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The insurance provider reported $3.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.53. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 18.89%. The business had revenue of $1.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.07 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that AXIS Capital will post 11.19 EPS for the current year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 17.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,959.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,404,133 shares in the company, valued at $224,786,435.50. This represents a 47.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AXIS Capital

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in AXIS Capital by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,144,247 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $367,265,000 after purchasing an additional 17,764 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in AXIS Capital by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,444,128 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $305,219,000 after purchasing an additional 12,571 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in AXIS Capital by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,178,512 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $281,680,000 after purchasing an additional 53,514 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in AXIS Capital by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,510 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $238,344,000 after purchasing an additional 134,157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in AXIS Capital by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,042,925 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $181,045,000 after purchasing an additional 20,976 shares in the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About AXIS Capital

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism.