RenaissanceRe (NYSE:RNR) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of RenaissanceRe (NYSE:RNR) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Saturday morning.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on RNR. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of RenaissanceRe from $252.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $312.00 price objective on shares of RenaissanceRe in a research note on Monday, February 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $267.00 target price on shares of RenaissanceRe in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on RenaissanceRe from $314.00 to $323.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $303.00 price target on shares of RenaissanceRe in a report on Friday, December 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $309.27.

RenaissanceRe Stock Performance

NYSE RNR opened at $301.21 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $280.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $261.74. The company has a market capitalization of $13.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.31, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.24. RenaissanceRe has a 1-year low of $219.00 and a 1-year high of $315.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

RenaissanceRe (NYSE:RNR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The insurance provider reported $13.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.59 by $2.75. The company had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.73 billion. RenaissanceRe had a return on equity of 18.29% and a net margin of 20.88%.RenaissanceRe’s revenue was up 29.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $8.06 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that RenaissanceRe will post 26.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RenaissanceRe Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $0.41 dividend. This is an increase from RenaissanceRe’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. RenaissanceRe’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.82%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other RenaissanceRe news, EVP Robert Qutub sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.75, for a total value of $1,528,750.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 73,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,326,782.25. This trade represents a 6.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RenaissanceRe

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in RenaissanceRe by 707.1% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 113 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of RenaissanceRe by 160.0% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 117 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of RenaissanceRe during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Huntington National Bank raised its position in shares of RenaissanceRe by 80.9% in the 2nd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 123 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in RenaissanceRe by 151.9% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 131 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. 99.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

RenaissanceRe Company Profile

RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. is a global provider of reinsurance and insurance solutions, specializing in property catastrophe, casualty, and specialty lines. Established in 1993 and headquartered in Bermuda, the company trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol RNR. With a focus on underwriting and risk assessment, RenaissanceRe offers tailored programs designed to help insurers and corporations manage exposure to natural disasters, liability claims, and other complex risks.

The company operates through two primary segments: Reinsurance and Insurance.