Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) Stock Price Down 4.8% – Time to Sell?

Verisk Analytics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VRSK)’s stock price fell 4.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $182.50 and last traded at $185.41. 1,022,433 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 49% from the average session volume of 1,991,137 shares. The stock had previously closed at $194.73.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group set a $224.00 price objective on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Verisk Analytics in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $205.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Verisk Analytics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, January 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Verisk Analytics from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Verisk Analytics from $239.00 to $206.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $237.20.

Verisk Analytics Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $25.53 billion, a PE ratio of 28.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.81. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $201.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $220.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.42, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.22. Verisk Analytics had a return on equity of 357.00% and a net margin of 29.56%.The firm had revenue of $778.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $773.74 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.61 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Verisk Analytics has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.450-7.75 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Verisk Analytics, Inc. will post 6.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Verisk Analytics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from Verisk Analytics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Verisk Analytics’s payout ratio is currently 30.82%.

Verisk Analytics announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to repurchase up to 10.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Elizabeth Mann sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.71, for a total value of $81,884.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 20,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,172,808.64. The trade was a 1.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher John Perry purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $180.00 per share, with a total value of $180,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $538,920. The trade was a 50.15% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Verisk Analytics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors increased its stake in Verisk Analytics by 1,200.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,264,323 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $730,196,000 after acquiring an additional 3,013,400 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Verisk Analytics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $556,192,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Verisk Analytics by 334.5% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 754,548 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $188,237,000 after purchasing an additional 580,885 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its holdings in shares of Verisk Analytics by 1,879.0% during the 3rd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 566,235 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $142,414,000 after purchasing an additional 537,623 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Verisk Analytics by 232.3% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 760,599 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $191,298,000 after purchasing an additional 531,713 shares during the period. 90.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Verisk Analytics

Verisk Analytics, Inc (NASDAQ: VRSK) is a data analytics and decision‑support provider that helps organizations assess and manage risk. The company supplies data, predictive models and software to customers in insurance, reinsurance, financial services, government, energy and other commercial markets. Its offerings are designed to support underwriting, pricing, claims management, catastrophe modeling, fraud detection and regulatory compliance, enabling clients to make more informed operational and strategic decisions.

Verisk’s product portfolio combines large proprietary datasets with analytics platforms and industry‑specific applications.