Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research upgraded Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy”.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

Universal Insurance stock opened at $31.20 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $875.13 million, a P/E ratio of 7.36 and a beta of 0.74. Universal Insurance has a one year low of $18.72 and a one year high of $35.84. The business has a fifty day moving average of $31.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $27.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.55.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.26. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 7.74% and a return on equity of 28.25%. The business had revenue of $400.03 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $366.36 million. As a group, analysts predict that Universal Insurance will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 12th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. Universal Insurance’s payout ratio is presently 15.09%.

Insider Transactions at Universal Insurance

In other news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of Universal Insurance stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.46, for a total transaction of $669,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 1,263,512 shares in the company, valued at $42,277,111.52. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jon Springer sold 35,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.41, for a total transaction of $1,113,013.35. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 271,628 shares in the company, valued at $8,531,835.48. The trade was a 11.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 99,743 shares of company stock worth $3,249,082. 16.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 12.7% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 371,982 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $9,783,000 after purchasing an additional 41,830 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its stake in Universal Insurance by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 131,777 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,466,000 after buying an additional 14,875 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its holdings in Universal Insurance by 14.8% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 23,161 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $609,000 after buying an additional 2,980 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Universal Insurance by 212.3% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 596,370 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $15,685,000 after buying an additional 405,403 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 102,196 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,688,000 after acquiring an additional 1,931 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.