AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Stock Holdings Lessened by Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lowered its stake in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 8.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 118,917 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 11,327 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $10,538,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of AXIS Capital in the third quarter worth $212,000. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 0.4% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 31,785 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,542,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 8.4% during the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 300,726 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $23,941,000 after buying an additional 23,377 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the third quarter valued at about $235,000. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 3.2% during the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 9,259 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $737,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AXIS Capital Stock Performance

NYSE AXS opened at $95.00 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $7.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.91. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $60.45 and a 12-month high of $98.11. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $91.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $87.00.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 18.89%. Analysts anticipate that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at AXIS Capital

In related news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,234,636 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,922.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,543,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $406,613,715. This represents a 32.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on AXS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, January 13th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price target on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $100.25.

AXIS Capital Company 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.