Raymond James Financial Inc. Takes $4.88 Million Position in Loews Co. (NYSE:L)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Loews Co. (NYSE:L) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 57,576 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,876,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Loews by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 54,196 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,590,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Loews in the fourth quarter worth about $5,359,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Loews by 117.2% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 832 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 449 shares during the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI purchased a new position in Loews during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Loews by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,623,291 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $137,477,000 after acquiring an additional 11,540 shares during the last quarter. 58.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Loews Price Performance

Shares of Loews stock opened at $89.17 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $18.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.93 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $85.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.19. Loews Co. has a one year low of $72.91 and a one year high of $89.67.

Loews (NYSE:L) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The insurance provider reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter. Loews had a net margin of 8.08% and a return on equity of 8.04%.

Loews Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.28%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. Loews’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Loews from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Insider Transactions at Loews

In related news, Director Jonathan M. Tisch sold 47,636 shares of Loews stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.88, for a total value of $4,043,343.68. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 6,705,529 shares in the company, valued at $569,165,301.52. The trade was a 0.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jonathan M. Tisch sold 3,691 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.89, for a total transaction of $320,710.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 158,860 shares of company stock worth $13,486,463. Insiders own 18.70% of the company’s stock.

Loews Profile

Loews Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance in the United States and internationally. The company offers specialty insurance products, such as management and professional liability, and other coverage products; surety and fidelity bonds; property insurance products that include standard and excess property, marine and boiler, and machinery coverages; and casualty insurance products, such as workers' compensation, general and product liability, and commercial auto, surplus, and umbrella coverages.