Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Lowers Stock Position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. lessened its position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 10,501 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 562 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $836,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in AXIS Capital by 8,717.0% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,361,250 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $96,172,000 after purchasing an additional 1,345,811 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $129,371,000 after buying an additional 318,784 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in AXIS Capital by 1,644.8% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 240,754 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $17,009,000 after acquiring an additional 226,956 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in AXIS Capital by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,583,700 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $182,538,000 after acquiring an additional 213,559 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in AXIS Capital by 113.0% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 315,018 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $20,484,000 after acquiring an additional 167,114 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on AXS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group raised their target price on AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on AXIS Capital from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.14.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

NYSE:AXS opened at $93.04 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $82.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.45. The stock has a market cap of $7.78 billion, a PE ratio of 12.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a one year low of $53.49 and a one year high of $94.39.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 10.82%. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.34 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is 24.41%.

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.