Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Purchases New Shares in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 7,992 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $387,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CNA. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of CNA Financial by 41.4% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,939,336 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $93,806,000 after purchasing an additional 567,926 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in CNA Financial by 66.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,177,110 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $56,937,000 after acquiring an additional 468,058 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in CNA Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $14,859,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in CNA Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $13,129,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in CNA Financial by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,486,853 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $71,919,000 after acquiring an additional 249,346 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

CNA Financial Stock Up 0.7%

CNA opened at $49.08 on Friday. CNA Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $42.85 and a fifty-two week high of $52.36. The business has a 50-day moving average of $48.46 and a 200-day moving average of $48.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The company has a market capitalization of $13.28 billion, a PE ratio of 13.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.53.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The insurance provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.13). CNA Financial had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 6.72%. The firm had revenue of $3.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.68 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. CNA Financial’s payout ratio is 56.10%.

Insider Activity at CNA Financial

In other CNA Financial news, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 12,991 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.06, for a total value of $637,338.46. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 75,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,709,524.72. This trade represents a 14.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Dino Robusto sold 6,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.86, for a total value of $305,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 720,442 shares in the company, valued at $35,200,796.12. This trade represents a 0.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 31,741 shares of company stock valued at $1,559,401. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CNA shares. StockNews.com downgraded CNA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on CNA Financial from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th.

CNA Financial Profile

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.