AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Shares Purchased by Treasurer of the State of North Carolina

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS - Free Report) by 23.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 41,844 shares of the insurance provider's stock after buying an additional 7,920 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina owned approximately 0.05% of AXIS Capital worth $3,708,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the fourth quarter valued at about $88,175,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in AXIS Capital during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $88,147,000. FIL Ltd bought a new stake in AXIS Capital in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,893,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in shares of AXIS Capital during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,775,000. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,118,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.44% of the company's stock.

AXIS Capital Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AXS traded down $0.35 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $94.60. The stock had a trading volume of 265,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 604,187. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $89.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $7.44 billion, a PE ratio of 7.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.67. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a 1 year low of $60.64 and a 1 year high of $101.42.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 18.16%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. AXIS Capital's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.25%.

Insider Activity

In other AXIS Capital news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total value of $199,999,959.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,404,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at $224,786,435.50. This represents a 47.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on AXS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on AXIS Capital from $120.00 to $114.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. StockNews.com upgraded AXIS Capital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of AXIS Capital from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of AXIS Capital in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.75.

About AXIS Capital

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism.