Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Grows Position in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) by 7.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 143,621 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 9,872 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. owned about 0.06% of Travelers Companies worth $33,625,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in Travelers Companies by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 7,215 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,467,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Travelers Companies by 48.9% during the 2nd quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,972 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $401,000 after buying an additional 648 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Travelers Companies by 10.3% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,331 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $271,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Travelers Companies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $410,000. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Travelers Companies by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 54,845 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $11,152,000 after buying an additional 1,097 shares during the period. 82.45% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Travelers Companies Stock Performance

Travelers Companies stock traded down $2.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $261.15. 1,086,485 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,301,717. The firm has a market cap of $59.29 billion, a PE ratio of 13.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.63. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $251.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $228.81. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $180.44 and a twelve month high of $269.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.34.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The insurance provider reported $5.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.79 by $1.45. The business had revenue of $11.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.46 billion. Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 17.69% and a net margin of 10.02%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.95 EPS. Equities analysts predict that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 18.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a $1.05 dividend. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Travelers Companies's payout ratio is currently 21.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $250.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Travelers Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $216.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $244.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $251.15.

Insider Activity at Travelers Companies

In related news, CEO Alan D. Schnitzer sold 40,524 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.12, for a total value of $10,541,102.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 221,924 shares of the company's stock, valued at $57,726,870.88. This trade represents a 15.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.55, for a total value of $781,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 250,384 shares of the company's stock, valued at $65,237,551.20. The trade was a 1.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 78,149 shares of company stock valued at $20,295,856 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.33% of the company's stock.

Travelers Companies Company Profile

The Travelers Companies, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides a range of commercial and personal property, and casualty insurance products and services to businesses, government units, associations, and individuals in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance, and Personal Insurance.