Teacher Retirement System of Texas Raises Holdings in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its stake in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:UVE - Free Report) by 19.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 106,503 shares of the insurance provider's stock after acquiring an additional 17,614 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned approximately 0.38% of Universal Insurance worth $2,243,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Universal Insurance by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 570,615 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $12,017,000 after buying an additional 285,338 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 22.4% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 347,395 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $7,698,000 after acquiring an additional 63,582 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 80.5% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 132,939 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $2,946,000 after acquiring an additional 59,290 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 128,888.9% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,045 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,222,000 after purchasing an additional 58,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Universal Insurance by 2,142.1% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 59,774 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,325,000 after acquiring an additional 57,108 shares during the last quarter. 66.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Universal Insurance from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Universal Insurance news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.51, for a total value of $1,025,500.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 985,320 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,208,913.20. This represents a 4.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 90,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,908,700 in the last ninety days. 17.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

Universal Insurance stock traded up $0.56 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $23.41. 250,464 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 175,340. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.50 and a 12 month high of $23.55. The stock's fifty day moving average is $20.77 and its 200-day moving average is $20.86. The stock has a market cap of $657.59 million, a P/E ratio of 9.51 and a beta of 0.84.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The insurance provider reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.16. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 4.82%. The company had revenue of $384.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $349.91 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Universal Insurance Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.73%. This is an increase from Universal Insurance's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Universal Insurance's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.16%.

About Universal Insurance

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated insurance holding company in the United States. It develops, markets, and underwrites insurance products for personal residential insurance, such as homeowners, renters/tenants, condo unit owners, and dwelling/fire; and offers allied lines, coverage for other structures, and personal property, liability, and personal articles coverages.