Barclays PLC Raises Stock Holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 53.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,964 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 17,082 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned about 0.06% of AXIS Capital worth $3,898,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXS. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in AXIS Capital by 8,717.0% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,361,250 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $96,172,000 after purchasing an additional 1,345,811 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $129,371,000 after acquiring an additional 318,784 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in AXIS Capital by 1,644.8% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 240,754 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $17,009,000 after acquiring an additional 226,956 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in AXIS Capital by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,583,700 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $182,538,000 after acquiring an additional 213,559 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its stake in AXIS Capital by 12.5% during the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,417,464 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $100,144,000 after purchasing an additional 157,110 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AXS shares. Bank of America increased their price target on AXIS Capital from $81.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on AXIS Capital from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AXIS Capital has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $98.71.

AXIS Capital Stock Performance

NYSE AXS traded down $0.17 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $89.86. 623,508 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 576,470. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12-month low of $53.88 and a 12-month high of $94.89. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $86.33 and a 200 day moving average of $78.74. The company has a market cap of $7.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 10.82%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.34 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.83 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio is currently 24.41%.

About AXIS Capital

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.