AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Shares Sold by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,263,771 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 3,567 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 1.51% of AXIS Capital worth $112,031,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AXS. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in AXIS Capital by 1.1% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 15,394 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,226,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 64.5% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 6,930 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $552,000 after purchasing an additional 2,718 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital in the 3rd quarter valued at about $453,000. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $638,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in AXIS Capital by 97.4% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 25,031 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,993,000 after buying an additional 12,350 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.44% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AXIS Capital

In other AXIS Capital news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,234,636 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total value of $199,999,922.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,543,170 shares of the company's stock, valued at $406,613,715. This represents a 32.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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AXIS Capital Price Performance

AXS stock traded up $1.19 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $95.74. The stock had a trading volume of 63,643 shares, compared to its average volume of 603,268. The stock has a market cap of $7.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.67. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 1-year low of $60.45 and a 1-year high of $101.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. The company's 50 day moving average price is $94.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.24.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 18.16%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on AXS shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AXIS Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. UBS Group boosted their price target on AXIS Capital from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $116.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.75.

AXIS Capital Company Profile

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.