JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 30,511 Shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced its position in shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 698,379 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 30,511 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.76% of RLI worth $115,114,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in RLI by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 471,752 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $77,759,000 after acquiring an additional 9,131 shares during the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of RLI during the fourth quarter worth approximately $728,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of RLI during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $17,854,000. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of RLI in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $840,000. Finally, Callan Family Office LLC bought a new position in RLI in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,199,000. 77.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

RLI Stock Down 5.6 %

NYSE RLI traded down $4.33 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $72.38. 844,804 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 353,082. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.34. The company has a market capitalization of $6.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.33 and a beta of 0.49. The company's 50-day moving average is $76.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $79.54. RLI Corp. has a one year low of $67.53 and a one year high of $91.15.

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RLI (NYSE:RLI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.64). RLI had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 19.53%. On average, analysts forecast that RLI Corp. will post 3.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

RLI Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. This is a positive change from RLI's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. RLI's payout ratio is 16.00%.

Insider Transactions at RLI

In other news, insider Jeffrey D. Fick bought 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $72.13 per share, for a total transaction of $144,260.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 142,061 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,246,859.93. The trade was a 1.43 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jordan W. Graham sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.77, for a total transaction of $112,155.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,854 shares of the company's stock, valued at $961,093.58. This represents a 10.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders bought 11,200 shares of company stock valued at $805,774 over the last three months. Company insiders own 5.09% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on RLI shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of RLI from a "buy" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $95.00 to $61.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of RLI from $100.50 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of RLI from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on RLI from $88.00 to $80.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Compass Point dropped their price objective on RLI from $185.00 to $82.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, RLI presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $82.80.

About RLI

RLI Corp., an insurance holding company, underwrites property and casualty insurance. Its Casualty segment provides commercial and personal coverage products; and general liability products, such as coverage for third-party liability of commercial insureds, including manufacturers, contractors, apartments, and mercantile.