Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. Purchases Shares of 10,500 Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 10,500 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,006,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AXS. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Axis Capital by 12.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 63,457 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,361,000 after buying an additional 7,023 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 205,553 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $20,605,000 after acquiring an additional 12,680 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 86.2% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 47,277 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,739,000 after acquiring an additional 21,892 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its holdings in shares of Axis Capital by 42.1% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 10,417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,044,000 after acquiring an additional 3,085 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Axis Capital by 33.6% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,924 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 987 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Axis Capital Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXS opened at $103.87 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a one year low of $84.81 and a one year high of $110.34. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $103.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $98.79. The company has a market capitalization of $8.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.65.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The insurance provider reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 18.99% and a net margin of 16.08%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.38 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Axis Capital’s payout ratio is 14.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 price target (down previously from $116.00) on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Monday, November 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Axis Capital from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, 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 research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Axis Capital currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.89.

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.