Essex Investment Management Co. LLC Reduces Stake in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE)

Essex Investment Management Co. LLC lowered its holdings in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE - Free Report) by 11.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 178,038 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 23,601 shares during the quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC owned 0.63% of Universal Insurance worth $3,749,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 570,615 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $12,017,000 after purchasing an additional 285,338 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 22.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 347,395 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $7,698,000 after purchasing an additional 63,582 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Universal Insurance by 80.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 132,939 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,946,000 after buying an additional 59,290 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Universal Insurance by 128,888.9% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,045 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,222,000 after buying an additional 58,000 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 2,142.1% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 59,774 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,325,000 after buying an additional 57,108 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.61% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity at Universal Insurance

In other news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.08, for a total transaction of $441,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 990,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,863,616. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jon Springer sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.63, for a total transaction of $515,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 383,228 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,905,993.64. This trade represents a 6.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 115,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,424,450. 17.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Universal Insurance from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

UVE traded up $0.65 during trading on Thursday, hitting $21.33. The company's stock had a trading volume of 179,587 shares, compared to its average volume of 168,596. The firm has a market capitalization of $599.29 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.67 and a beta of 0.84. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $16.50 and a twelve month high of $23.39. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $20.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

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

Universal Insurance Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Universal Insurance's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Universal Insurance's dividend payout ratio is 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.