CNA Financial Corporation $CNA Shares Purchased by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of CNA Financial Corporation (NYSE:CNA) by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,183,892 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 156,077 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.44% of CNA Financial worth $55,004,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNA. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in CNA Financial by 578.1% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 495,860 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $23,072,000 after purchasing an additional 422,737 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of CNA Financial in the second quarter valued at about $17,266,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 277.4% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 260,143 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $12,042,000 after buying an additional 191,214 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of CNA Financial by 145.6% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 214,575 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $9,984,000 after buying an additional 127,223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in CNA Financial by 100.4% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 183,649 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $8,545,000 after acquiring an additional 91,992 shares during the last quarter. 98.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CNA Financial Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of CNA opened at $46.94 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. CNA Financial Corporation has a 12-month low of $43.29 and a 12-month high of $51.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $47.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.01, a P/E/G ratio of 8.96 and a beta of 0.34.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The insurance provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.88 billion. CNA Financial had a return on equity of 12.23% and a net margin of 8.53%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.25 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that CNA Financial Corporation will post 4.64 EPS for the current year.

CNA Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $2.00 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 409.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. CNA Financial’s payout ratio is presently 40.94%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on CNA shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of CNA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 15th. Zacks Research cut CNA Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded CNA Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CNA Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Insider Activity at CNA Financial

In related news, Chairman Dino Robusto sold 6,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.62, for a total value of $297,625.00. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 661,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,516,725.56. This represents a 0.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CNA Financial Company Profile

CNA Financial Corporation is a leading U.S.-based commercial property and casualty insurance company offering a broad portfolio of risk management and insurance solutions. The company underwrites coverage for businesses of all sizes across a variety of industry sectors, including manufacturing, healthcare, energy, technology, construction and real estate. In addition to core property and casualty insurance, CNA delivers specialized products such as surety bonds, professional liability, environmental liability and commercial auto coverage.

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, CNA traces its origins to the founding of Continental Casualty Company in 1897.