Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Receives $117.67 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $117.6667.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Axis Capital from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, November 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $123.00 target price on shares of Axis Capital and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Axis Capital

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in Axis Capital by 12.2% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 7,145 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $716,000 after purchasing an additional 776 shares during the period. Credit Agricole S A lifted its position in Axis Capital by 110.7% in the 1st quarter. Credit Agricole S A now owns 21,919 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,197,000 after acquiring an additional 11,516 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 95.1% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,852,398 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $185,685,000 after buying an additional 903,107 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Axis Capital by 14.9% during the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,045 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $706,000 after acquiring an additional 915 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new position in Axis Capital during the first quarter worth $563,000. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Axis Capital Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of AXS stock opened at $109.00 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $100.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $98.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.65. Axis Capital has a fifty-two week low of $83.90 and a fifty-two week high of $110.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.53. Axis Capital had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 18.99%. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.71 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Axis Capital will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.55%.

About Axis Capital

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.