CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) Reaches New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of CNA Financial Corporation (NYSE:CNA) reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $52.99 and last traded at $53.1850, with a volume of 26885 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $52.22.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of CNA Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of CNA Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CNA Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

CNA Financial Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.02. The company has a market cap of $14.39 billion, a PE ratio of 11.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.09 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The insurance provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.47). The firm had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.93 billion. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 11.57% and a net margin of 8.08%.During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that CNA Financial Corporation will post 4.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. CNA Financial’s payout ratio is currently 42.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CNA Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in CNA Financial by 12.3% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 7,080 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 774 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in CNA Financial by 41.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 135,873 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,239,000 after purchasing an additional 40,130 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its position in CNA Financial by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 119,038 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $5,466,000 after purchasing an additional 1,428 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in CNA Financial by 18.0% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 7,222 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 1,103 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in CNA Financial by 48.9% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 685,247 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $31,467,000 after purchasing an additional 225,030 shares during the period. 98.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CNA Financial

CNA Financial Corporation is a leading U.S.-based commercial property and casualty insurance company offering a broad portfolio of risk management and insurance solutions. The company underwrites coverage for businesses of all sizes across a variety of industry sectors, including manufacturing, healthcare, energy, technology, construction and real estate. In addition to core property and casualty insurance, CNA delivers specialized products such as surety bonds, professional liability, environmental liability and commercial auto coverage.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, CNA traces its origins to the founding of Continental Casualty Company in 1897.