AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $98.71.

A number of analysts have issued reports on AXS shares. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th.

AXIS Capital Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of AXS opened at $91.03 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $84.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $77.81. AXIS Capital has a 12-month low of $53.49 and a 12-month high of $94.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $7.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.94.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.16. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 10.82% and a return on equity of 19.24%. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that AXIS Capital will post 10.83 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.41%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AXIS Capital

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the third quarter worth about $507,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in AXIS Capital by 24.4% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $129,371,000 after buying an additional 318,784 shares during the last quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP acquired a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,249,000. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 8.4% during the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 300,726 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $23,941,000 after acquiring an additional 23,377 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 71.6% during the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,265 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,374,000 after acquiring an additional 7,205 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company’s stock.

AXIS Capital Company Profile

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.