Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 348,993 Shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) by 7,053.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 353,941 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 348,993 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in AXIS Capital were worth $31,366,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in AXIS Capital in the fourth quarter worth about $31,118,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.4% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $129,371,000 after buying an additional 318,784 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 131.9% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 254,551 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $20,265,000 after buying an additional 144,792 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 48.6% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 371,557 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,070,000 after buying an additional 121,437 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 7.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,675,417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $134,110,000 after buying an additional 112,536 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on AXS shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $99.88.

Insider Transactions at AXIS Capital

In other news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,234,636 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now owns 4,543,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $406,613,715. This trade represents a 32.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXS opened at $91.89 on Friday. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a twelve month low of $60.06 and a twelve month high of $94.89. The company’s 50 day moving average is $89.85 and its 200 day moving average is $84.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market cap of $7.69 billion, a PE ratio of 7.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 0.95.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.92%. AXIS Capital’s payout ratio is 14.25%.

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.