Verition Fund Management LLC Buys Shares of 10,617 CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 10,617 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $520,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CNA Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $55,000. Whittier Trust Co. purchased a new stake in shares of CNA Financial during the second quarter worth $92,000. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of CNA Financial in the second quarter valued at about $94,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 17.3% in the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,059 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $95,000 after buying an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its position in CNA Financial by 26.6% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,449 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $169,000 after acquiring an additional 725 shares during the last quarter. 98.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CNA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of CNA Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Bank of America increased their price target on CNA Financial from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on CNA Financial from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th.

Insider Buying and Selling at CNA Financial

In other CNA Financial news, EVP Mark Steven James sold 18,547 shares of CNA Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.58, for a total transaction of $938,107.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,159,141.86. The trade was a 44.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Douglas Worman sold 22,973 shares of CNA Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.75, for a total transaction of $1,119,933.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 133,777 shares in the company, valued at $6,521,628.75. The trade was a 14.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

CNA Financial Trading Down 0.1 %

CNA Financial stock traded down $0.05 during trading on Thursday, hitting $48.34. The company had a trading volume of 283,042 shares, compared to its average volume of 276,854. The stock has a market cap of $13.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.42 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. CNA Financial Co. has a 1-year low of $40.92 and a 1-year high of $52.36. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $49.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.20.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.01. CNA Financial had a net margin of 9.26% and a return on equity of 13.30%. The business had revenue of $3.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.06 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CNA Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. CNA Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.67%.

CNA Financial Company Profile

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.