Hsbc Global Res Upgrades Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) to "Strong-Buy"

Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV - Free Report) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

TRV has been the topic of several other reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Travelers Companies from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Travelers Companies from $244.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Travelers Companies from $233.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Travelers Companies from $245.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Travelers Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $251.70.

Travelers Companies Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE TRV traded down $2.33 on Tuesday, hitting $245.32. 940,409 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,304,641. Travelers Companies has a fifty-two week low of $181.03 and a fifty-two week high of $269.55. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $252.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $229.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a market cap of $55.69 billion, a PE ratio of 12.50, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.63.

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

Travelers Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. Travelers Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Travelers Companies

In other news, CEO Alan D. Schnitzer sold 40,524 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.12, for a total transaction of $10,541,102.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 221,924 shares in the company, valued at $57,726,870.88. The trade was a 15.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 3,740 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.80, for a total transaction of $990,352.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 250,384 shares in the company, valued at $66,301,683.20. The trade was a 1.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 78,149 shares of company stock worth $20,295,856. 1.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Travelers Companies

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TRV. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 39.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 135,957 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $32,646,000 after buying an additional 38,515 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in Travelers Companies by 42.7% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 7,430 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,740,000 after purchasing an additional 2,225 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Travelers Companies in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,174,000. Arvest Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in Travelers Companies during the third quarter valued at approximately $16,344,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Travelers Companies during the third quarter worth approximately $501,000. 82.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Travelers Companies

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.