Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Invests $37.78 Million in AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 426,258 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $37,775,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 0.51% of AXIS Capital as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AXS. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,931 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $171,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in AXIS Capital by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,799 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in AXIS Capital by 21.6% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 900 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in AXIS Capital by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 15,394 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,226,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $120.00 to $114.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $89.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group raised their target price on AXIS Capital from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on AXIS Capital in a report on Monday, January 13th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $93.00 price target for the company. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $101.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total transaction of $199,999,959.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,404,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $224,786,435.50. This represents a 47.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

AXIS Capital Trading Down 2.9 %

Shares of NYSE AXS traded down $2.72 during trading on Thursday, reaching $90.87. The company had a trading volume of 125,270 shares, compared to its average volume of 603,662. The company's fifty day moving average price is $93.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $88.89. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 12 month low of $60.45 and a 12 month high of $101.42. The stock has a market cap of $7.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.38, a PEG ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.25%.

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.