Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS Position Boosted by Earned Wealth Advisors LLC

Earned Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 8.4% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,608 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Axis Capital were worth $271,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in Axis Capital by 1,542.9% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 575 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in Axis Capital by 34.0% in the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in Axis Capital by 36.9% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,184 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $119,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new stake in Axis Capital in the second quarter worth approximately $126,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE lifted its position in Axis Capital by 34.3% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,628 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $163,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.67, for a total value of $345,345.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 47,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,666,597.65. This represents a 6.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Daniel J. Draper sold 4,305 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.57, for a total transaction of $420,038.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,269 shares in the company, valued at $1,587,366.33. This trade represents a 20.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 12,205 shares of company stock worth $1,188,048 over the last ninety days. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Axis Capital Price Performance

AXS opened at $93.62 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $95.48 and a 200-day moving average of $97.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.74, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.73. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $77.21 and a 12-month high of $107.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.72 by $0.53. The company had revenue of $184.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 16.08%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.71 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AXS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Axis Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $123.00 target price on Axis Capital and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group upped their target price on Axis Capital from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Axis Capital in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price objective for the company. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Axis Capital presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $115.29.

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.