RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:RNR) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:RNR - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,740,000 shares, an increase of 29.9% from the September 30th total of 1,340,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 364,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on RNR. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on RenaissanceRe from $280.00 to $314.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of RenaissanceRe from $262.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Barclays began coverage on shares of RenaissanceRe in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $287.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of RenaissanceRe from $257.00 to $240.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on RenaissanceRe from $251.00 to $248.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $289.00.

RenaissanceRe Price Performance

RNR traded down $1.20 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $268.08. The stock had a trading volume of 257,853 shares, compared to its average volume of 344,504. The business has a 50-day moving average of $264.59 and a 200-day moving average of $238.94. RenaissanceRe has a one year low of $188.24 and a one year high of $284.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38. The stock has a market cap of $14.18 billion, a PE ratio of 5.95, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.38.

RenaissanceRe Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. RenaissanceRe's payout ratio is 3.45%.

Insider Transactions at RenaissanceRe

In related news, EVP David E. Marra sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.00, for a total transaction of $279,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 82,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,890,276. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of RenaissanceRe

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of RNR. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of RenaissanceRe in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Blue Trust Inc. bought a new stake in RenaissanceRe in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of RenaissanceRe by 316.7% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 125 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of RenaissanceRe in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of RenaissanceRe in the first quarter worth $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.97% of the company's stock.

RenaissanceRe Company Profile

RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides reinsurance and insurance products in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Property, and Casualty and Specialty segments. The Property segment writes property catastrophe excess of loss reinsurance and excess of loss reinsurance to insure insurance and reinsurance companies against natural and man-made catastrophes, including hurricanes, earthquakes, typhoons, and tsunamis, as well as winter storms, freezes, floods, fires, windstorms, tornadoes, explosions, and acts of terrorism; and other property class of products, such as proportional reinsurance, property per risk, property reinsurance, binding facilities, and regional U.S.