Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Invests $1.21 Million in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 57,570 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,212,000. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned 0.20% of Universal Insurance as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 55.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,171 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 776 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 24,415 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $514,000 after purchasing an additional 2,160 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Universal Insurance by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,674,545 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $35,266,000 after purchasing an additional 4,480 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in Universal Insurance in the 4th quarter worth about $103,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP increased its position in Universal Insurance by 45,981.8% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 5,069 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $107,000 after purchasing an additional 5,058 shares during the last quarter. 66.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com cut Universal Insurance from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of Universal Insurance stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.08, for a total value of $441,600.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 990,200 shares in the company, valued at $21,863,616. This trade represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 17.50% of the company's stock.

Universal Insurance Stock Down 4.8 %

UVE stock traded down $1.07 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $21.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 228,233 shares, compared to its average volume of 176,624. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $21.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.92. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.50 and a 12 month high of $24.14. The company has a market capitalization of $596.17 million, a PE ratio of 8.63 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The insurance provider reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.16. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 4.82% and a return on equity of 15.43%. The firm had revenue of $384.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $349.91 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. This is an increase from Universal Insurance's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Universal Insurance's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.16%.

Universal Insurance Profile

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.