RLI Corp. $RLI Shares Bought by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) by 311.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 688,318 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after buying an additional 521,096 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in RLI were worth $39,262,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of RLI. Chatham Capital Group Inc. increased its position in shares of RLI by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Chatham Capital Group Inc. now owns 26,460 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,693,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in RLI by 13.0% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,590 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in RLI by 94.4% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 414 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in RLI by 0.3% in the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 75,502 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $4,924,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the period. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN grew its stake in RLI by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 5,819 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $372,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.89% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at RLI

In related news, Director Clark C. Kellogg bought 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $50.90 per share, for a total transaction of $152,700.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 4,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $229,151.80. This represents a 199.73% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David B. Duclos bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $51.99 per share, for a total transaction of $129,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $508,462.20. The trade was a 34.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders purchased a total of 16,500 shares of company stock worth $858,955 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Zacks Research upgraded RLI from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Weiss Ratings cut RLI from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded RLI from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of RLI from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of RLI from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, RLI presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $60.50.

RLI Trading Up 3.5%

NYSE:RLI opened at $64.07 on Tuesday. RLI Corp. has a 1 year low of $47.26 and a 1 year high of $69.19. The stock has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.46 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.35. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $56.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.39.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $575.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $568.70 million. RLI had a return on equity of 17.61% and a net margin of 22.22%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.82 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that RLI Corp. will post 2.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a $0.18 dividend. This is an increase from RLI’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. RLI’s payout ratio is currently 15.13%.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corporation (NYSE:RLI) is a specialty property and casualty insurance company focused on underwriting niche risks for businesses and individuals. Headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, the company operates through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering customized coverage solutions. RLI’s approach emphasizes disciplined underwriting, targeted product development and strong customer service to maintain profitability and long-term growth.

Founded in 1965 as Replacement Lens, Inc, RLI initially provided insurance for contact lens manufacturers before shifting its focus to specialty insurance in the 1980s.