Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Has $12.13 Million Holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC trimmed its holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 12.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 136,916 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 19,907 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned about 0.16% of AXIS Capital worth $12,133,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in AXIS Capital by 235.6% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 165,100 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $11,664,000 after purchasing an additional 115,900 shares during the last quarter. Argent Trust Co acquired a new stake in AXIS Capital during the 2nd quarter worth $205,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in AXIS Capital by 3.7% in the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 9,527 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $673,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the period. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 21.3% in the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 6,854 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $484,000 after acquiring an additional 1,203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the 2nd quarter valued at about $427,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen upped their price target on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, January 13th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $93.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $99.25.

AXIS Capital Stock Performance

Shares of AXS traded up $0.15 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $90.19. The company had a trading volume of 592,845 shares, compared to its average volume of 492,482. The business has a fifty day moving average of $89.29 and a 200-day moving average of $81.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $7.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.51, a PEG ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 0.95. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12 month low of $54.31 and a 12 month high of $94.89.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.34 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio is 24.41%.

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.