Gries Financial LLC Boosts Stake in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Gries Financial LLC raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 7.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,815 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the period. Gries Financial LLC’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $338,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Independent Advisor Alliance raised its stake in AXIS Capital by 0.4% during the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 32,549 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,591,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 31,785 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,542,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 32.6% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 602 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in AXIS Capital by 1.1% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 15,394 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,226,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AXS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on AXIS Capital from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.25.

AXIS Capital Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of AXS opened at $92.74 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $90.05 and a 200 day moving average of $82.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 1-year low of $55.56 and a 1-year high of $94.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.86, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 0.95.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 10.82%. On average, research analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.89 EPS for the current year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.41%.

AXIS Capital Profile

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.