US Bancorp DE Cuts Stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. $TRV

US Bancorp DE trimmed its stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) by 0.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 524,094 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 4,002 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Travelers Companies were worth $146,337,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of Travelers Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at $679,000. MAI Capital Management raised its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 106.4% in the 3rd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 29,543 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,249,000 after buying an additional 15,230 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Travelers Companies by 3.3% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 7,971 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,226,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors grew its position in Travelers Companies by 41.6% during the third quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors now owns 160 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Waddell & Associates LLC increased its stake in Travelers Companies by 45.9% during the third quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC now owns 1,567 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $438,000 after acquiring an additional 493 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.45% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jeffrey P. Klenk sold 16,712 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.77, for a total transaction of $4,675,516.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,699,602.75. This trade represents a 73.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Frederick Klein sold 10,000 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.18, for a total transaction of $3,011,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 33,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,131,092.84. This trade represents a 22.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 92,845 shares of company stock worth $27,239,631. 1.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Travelers Companies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Roth Mkm raised their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Travelers Companies from $302.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Travelers Companies to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $316.00 to $319.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Travelers Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $304.33.

Travelers Companies Trading Down 0.2%

TRV opened at $304.67 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $288.63 and its 200-day moving average is $281.31. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $230.43 and a 52-week high of $309.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.51.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The insurance provider reported $11.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.34 by $2.79. Travelers Companies had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 20.70%. The business had revenue of $12.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.13 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $9.15 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 17.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, January 21st that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to repurchase up to 8.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Travelers Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. Travelers Companies’s payout ratio is presently 15.98%.

Travelers Companies Company Profile

The Travelers Companies, Inc (NYSE: TRV) is a leading provider of property and casualty insurance products and services. The company underwrites a broad range of commercial and personal insurance lines, offering coverage designed to protect individuals, small and midsize businesses, and large corporate clients against property loss, liability, and other operational risks. Travelers is known for combining underwriting, claims management and risk control services to help clients prevent losses and recover when incidents occur.

On the commercial side, Travelers writes primary and specialty coverages including property, general liability, commercial auto, workers’ compensation, professional and management liability, surety and inland marine.