Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Receives $121.89 Average Target Price from Analysts

Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $121.8889.

AXS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of Axis Capital in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Axis Capital from $121.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Compass Point set a $121.00 target price on Axis Capital in a report on Monday, November 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Axis Capital from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $115.00 price target (down previously from $116.00) on shares of Axis Capital in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Axis Capital

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Axis Capital by 12.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 63,457 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $6,361,000 after purchasing an additional 7,023 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Axis Capital by 6.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 205,553 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $20,605,000 after buying an additional 12,680 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC grew its holdings in Axis Capital by 86.2% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 47,277 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $4,739,000 after buying an additional 21,892 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth raised its position in Axis Capital by 42.1% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 10,417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,044,000 after buying an additional 3,085 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Axis Capital by 34.0% during the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $106,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

Axis Capital Stock Down 0.4%

Axis Capital stock opened at $99.90 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.70 billion, a PE ratio of 8.26, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.65. Axis Capital has a 12-month low of $84.81 and a 12-month high of $110.34. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $103.16 and its 200 day moving average is $98.54. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.72 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.33 billion. Axis Capital had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 18.99%. The business’s revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Axis Capital will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. 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.