Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB)

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its stake in Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB) by 18.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 7,034 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,569 shares during the period. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Chubb were worth $1,943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Chubb by 57.8% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 356,602 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $102,840,000 after purchasing an additional 130,629 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of Chubb by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 81,282 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,458,000 after buying an additional 4,757 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Chubb by 28.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,772,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $511,226,000 after buying an additional 388,746 shares during the period. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of Chubb during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,424,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in Chubb by 133.9% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $153,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares during the period. 83.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Chubb

In related news, EVP Joseph F. Wayland sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $286.96, for a total transaction of $2,869,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 77,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,297,652.88. This represents a 11.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Evan G. Greenberg sold 25,728 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.45, for a total value of $7,498,425.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 584,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $170,321,922.75. This represents a 4.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 63,470 shares of company stock valued at $18,562,730 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Chubb Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of Chubb stock opened at $296.36 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $279.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $281.41. Chubb Limited has a 52-week low of $238.85 and a 52-week high of $302.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $118.67 billion, a PE ratio of 13.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.66.

Chubb (NYSE:CB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $6.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by $0.69. Chubb had a net margin of 16.63% and a return on equity of 13.75%. On average, analysts anticipate that Chubb Limited will post 21.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chubb Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Chubb’s payout ratio is currently 16.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Chubb from $349.00 to $324.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Chubb from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Chubb from $268.00 to $264.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Chubb from $296.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Chubb from $328.00 to $329.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $301.00.

Chubb Company Profile

Chubb Limited provides insurance and reinsurance products worldwide. The company's North America Commercial P&C Insurance segment offers commercial property, casualty, workers' compensation, package policies, risk management, financial lines, marine, construction, environmental, medical risk, cyber risk, surety, and casualty; and group accident and health insurance to large, middle market, and small commercial businesses.