Madison Investment Advisors LLC Takes Position in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 62,435 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $5,533,000. Madison Investment Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.07% of AXIS Capital as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AXS. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new position in AXIS Capital in the fourth quarter valued at $53,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in AXIS Capital by 24.0% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 73.8% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital during the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, January 13th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $93.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on AXIS Capital from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a report on Monday, February 3rd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on AXIS Capital from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, StockNews.com raised AXIS Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $100.25.

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AXIS Capital Stock Performance

NYSE:AXS traded up $0.88 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $99.51. 1,202,168 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 568,622. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.04 billion, a PE ratio of 8.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.91. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $92.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $87.42. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a one year low of $60.45 and a one year high of $100.49. 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 (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a net margin of 18.16% and a return on equity of 18.89%. Analysts anticipate that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. AXIS Capital's payout ratio is 14.25%.

Insider Transactions at AXIS Capital

In related news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,959.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,404,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $224,786,435.50. The trade was a 47.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AXIS Capital 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.