AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Shares Bought by BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 300,726 shares of the insurance provider's stock after purchasing an additional 23,377 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. owned approximately 0.36% of AXIS Capital worth $23,941,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,345,811 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 30.7% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,321,271 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $150,928,000 after purchasing an additional 545,546 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,625,057 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $129,371,000 after purchasing an additional 318,784 shares in the last quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the 1st quarter worth about $17,065,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in AXIS Capital by 1,644.8% in 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 in the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. 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 note on Wednesday, October 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective 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. Roth Mkm raised their price target on shares of AXIS Capital from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a report on Friday, October 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $118.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $95.86.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

AXS stock traded up $0.64 during trading on Friday, hitting $88.75. 459,928 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 479,954. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 52 week low of $53.49 and a 52 week high of $89.31.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The insurance provider reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 10.82% and a return on equity of 19.24%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.34 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 10.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.