RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $63.00.

Several research firms have weighed in on RLI. Weiss Ratings upgraded RLI from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $74.00 target price (up from $70.00) on shares of RLI in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group set a $74.00 target price on shares of RLI in a research report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of RLI from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of RLI from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $57.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday.

Insider Transactions at RLI

In other news, Director David B. Duclos bought 2,500 shares of RLI stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $51.99 per share, with a total value of $129,975.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 9,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $508,462.20. This trade represents a 34.34% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Jennifer L. Klobnak bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $53.42 per share, for a total transaction of $106,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 102,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,465,827.56. This represents a 1.99% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have bought 16,500 shares of company stock worth $858,955. 2.39% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of RLI

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RLI. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of RLI by 40.7% during the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,631,273 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $214,499,000 after acquiring an additional 1,051,318 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its position in RLI by 37.6% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 38,060 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,248,000 after purchasing an additional 10,400 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in RLI by 4.6% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,534 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $327,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Securities CORP. raised its stake in RLI by 12.2% during the second quarter. Brighton Securities CORP. now owns 4,076 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in RLI by 28.5% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 835 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. 77.89% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

RLI Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE RLI opened at $61.31 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $5.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.88 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $57.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.49. RLI has a twelve month low of $47.26 and a twelve month high of $69.19.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.11. RLI had a return on equity of 17.61% and a net margin of 22.22%.The firm had revenue of $575.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $568.70 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.82 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that RLI will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. This is a positive change from RLI’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. RLI’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.13%.

About RLI

RLI Corporation (NYSE:RLI) is a specialty property and casualty insurance company focused on underwriting niche risks for businesses and individuals. Headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, the company operates through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering customized coverage solutions. RLI’s approach emphasizes disciplined underwriting, targeted product development and strong customer service to maintain profitability and long-term growth.

Founded in 1965 as Replacement Lens, Inc, RLI initially provided insurance for contact lens manufacturers before shifting its focus to specialty insurance in the 1980s.