Virtu Financial LLC Makes New Investment in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 14,092 shares of the insurance provider's stock, valued at approximately $690,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CNA. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its position in CNA Financial by 366.7% during the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,401,539 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $68,591,000 after buying an additional 1,101,217 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in CNA Financial by 97.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,152,528 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $51,760,000 after acquiring an additional 570,172 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in CNA Financial by 570.6% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 529,862 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $24,411,000 after purchasing an additional 450,843 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in CNA Financial by 45.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,068,956 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $49,247,000 after buying an additional 334,463 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in CNA Financial by 158.0% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 288,443 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $14,116,000 after acquiring an additional 176,649 shares during the period. 98.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CNA Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CNA traded up $0.54 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $48.85. 324,973 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 277,054. The company's 50 day moving average is $49.04 and its 200 day moving average is $48.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.26 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.23 billion, a PE ratio of 10.18, a P/E/G ratio of 6.20 and a beta of 0.66. CNA Financial Co. has a one year low of $40.92 and a one year high of $52.36.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The insurance provider reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.01. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 13.30% and a net margin of 9.26%. The firm had revenue of $3.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.06 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.68 earnings per share for the current year.

CNA Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. CNA Financial's payout ratio is 36.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. 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 report on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of CNA Financial from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised CNA Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Douglas Worman sold 22,973 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.75, for a total value of $1,119,933.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 133,777 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,521,628.75. The trade was a 14.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark Steven James sold 18,547 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.58, for a total value of $938,107.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,159,141.86. This trade represents a 44.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

CNA Financial 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.