AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) Receives $67.33 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the five brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $67.33.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on AXIS Capital from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on AXIS Capital from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on AXIS Capital from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th.

AXIS Capital Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE:AXS opened at $68.80 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.62. AXIS Capital has a 1 year low of $51.61 and a 1 year high of $69.11. The company has a market cap of $5.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.52, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $63.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.88.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The insurance provider reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.49 billion. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 19.11% and a net margin of 10.34%. AXIS Capital’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.33 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that AXIS Capital will post 10.17 earnings per share for the current year.

AXIS Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.91%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 0.6% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 368,524 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $23,961,000 after buying an additional 2,279 shares during the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new stake in AXIS Capital in the 1st quarter worth $338,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,101,000. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of AXIS Capital by 14.3% during the first quarter. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. now owns 257,687 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $16,755,000 after purchasing an additional 32,231 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 29.7% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 26,081 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,696,000 after purchasing an additional 5,974 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AXIS Capital Company Profile

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.