CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) Shares Sold by Donald Smith & CO. Inc.

Donald Smith & CO. Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 517,778 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 1,125 shares during the period. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. owned about 0.19% of CNA Financial worth $25,045,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP lifted its stake in CNA Financial by 49.9% during the fourth quarter. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP now owns 123,073 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $5,953,000 after buying an additional 40,958 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of CNA Financial by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 322,473 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $15,604,000 after acquiring an additional 24,449 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of CNA Financial by 43.8% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 31,269 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,512,000 after acquiring an additional 9,528 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in CNA Financial by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 41,670 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,016,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares during the period. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its position in CNA Financial by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 35,301 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,708,000 after purchasing an additional 1,866 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at CNA Financial

In other news, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 12,991 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.06, for a total transaction of $637,338.46. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 75,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,709,524.72. This trade represents a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Dino Robusto acquired 3,896 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $47.63 per share, with a total value of $185,566.48. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chairman now directly owns 724,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,500,218.94. This represents a 0.54 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 25,491 shares of company stock valued at $1,261,838. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

CNA Financial Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CNA opened at $50.77 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $49.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. CNA Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $42.33 and a 12-month high of $52.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.68.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.14. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 6.72%. On average, equities analysts expect that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. This is an increase from CNA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. CNA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CNA. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on CNA Financial from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com lowered CNA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

CNA Financial Company Profile

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.