Barclays PLC Sells 5,860 Shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI)

Barclays PLC lessened its stake in shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Free Report) by 24.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,539 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 5,860 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC's holdings in RLI were worth $2,871,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. NFJ Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in RLI in the third quarter worth $9,931,000. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in RLI in the third quarter worth $9,458,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in RLI by 1.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,393,250 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $680,866,000 after purchasing an additional 58,167 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in RLI in the third quarter valued at $5,817,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in RLI by 172.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 53,921 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $8,357,000 after purchasing an additional 34,159 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.89% of the company's stock.

RLI Price Performance

Shares of RLI traded down $0.89 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $75.16. 479,211 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 621,344. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $79.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. RLI Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $67.53 and a fifty-two week high of $91.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.89 billion, a PE ratio of 20.07 and a beta of 0.46.

RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.64). RLI had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 19.53%. As a group, research analysts predict that RLI Corp. will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. This is an increase from RLI's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. RLI's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.49%.

Insider Transactions at RLI

In other news, insider Jeffrey D. Fick acquired 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $72.13 per share, for a total transaction of $144,260.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 142,061 shares in the company, valued at $10,246,859.93. This trade represents a 1.43 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Craig W. Kliethermes bought 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $71.35 per share, for a total transaction of $356,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 139,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,931,206.50. This trade represents a 3.73 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 11,200 shares of company stock worth $805,774 in the last three months. 5.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered RLI from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point lowered their target price on RLI from $185.00 to $82.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on RLI from $88.00 to $80.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of RLI in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on RLI from $100.50 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $82.80.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.