Moors & Cabot Inc. Increases Stock Position in Old Republic International Co. (NYSE:ORI)

Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its holdings in Old Republic International Co. (NYSE:ORI) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,030 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Old Republic International were worth $833,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Old Republic International in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Old Republic International during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Old Republic International in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Core Alternative Capital purchased a new stake in Old Republic International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Old Republic International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.92% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Old Republic International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th.

Old Republic International Stock Up 2.2 %

ORI stock opened at $37.41 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.28 billion, a PE ratio of 14.22 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a fifty day moving average of $36.33 and a 200-day moving average of $36.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.62. Old Republic International Co. has a one year low of $28.59 and a one year high of $39.27.

Old Republic International (NYSE:ORI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The insurance provider reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.19. Old Republic International had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 20.32%. As a group, analysts expect that Old Republic International Co. will post 3.17 EPS for the current year.

Old Republic International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from Old Republic International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. Old Republic International’s payout ratio is 44.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Craig R. Smiddy sold 5,296 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.60, for a total transaction of $204,425.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 138,222 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,335,369.20. This represents a 3.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Thomas Dare sold 27,457 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.50, for a total transaction of $1,002,180.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 46,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,699,294. This represents a 37.10 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 43,039 shares of company stock valued at $1,580,733 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.78% of the company’s stock.

About Old Republic International

Old Republic International Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the insurance underwriting and related services business primarily in the United States and Canada. It operates through three segments: General Insurance, Title Insurance, and Republic Financial Indemnity Group Run-off Business.