Palomar (NASDAQ:PLMR) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.18 EPS

Palomar (NASDAQ:PLMR) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $2.24 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.18, FiscalAI reports. Palomar had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 21.93%.

Palomar Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of PLMR traded up $2.39 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $131.64. 376,174 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 224,457. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a 50-day moving average of $128.01 and a 200 day moving average of $123.14. Palomar has a one year low of $107.75 and a one year high of $175.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PLMR has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Palomar from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered Palomar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Palomar in a report on Monday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $150.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Palomar from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Palomar from $170.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $158.14.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Palomar news, President Jon Christianson sold 1,991 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.88, for a total value of $238,681.08. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 62,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,550,641.80. This trade represents a 3.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mac Armstrong sold 11,484 shares of Palomar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.88, for a total value of $1,376,701.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 91,737 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,997,431.56. This trade represents a 11.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 58,998 shares of company stock valued at $7,255,669. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PLMR. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of Palomar in the 3rd quarter valued at about $57,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Palomar during the first quarter worth approximately $66,000. iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in Palomar in the third quarter valued at approximately $81,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in Palomar by 4,061.1% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 731 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vestcor Inc bought a new position in Palomar in the third quarter valued at approximately $110,000. 90.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Palomar Company Profile

Palomar Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: PLMR) is a specialty insurance holding company focused on providing medical stop-loss coverage and related administrative services to self-funded employer health plans in the United States. The firm operates through two primary business segments—Medical Stop-Loss and Specialty Program Management—to deliver tailored risk protection and comprehensive program administration.

In its Medical Stop-Loss segment, Palomar underwrites excess and aggregate stop-loss policies designed to shield self-insured employers from catastrophic medical claims that exceed pre-determined retention levels.