Zacks Research Predicts Stronger Earnings for Axis Capital

Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) – Research analysts at Zacks Research increased their Q2 2027 earnings per share estimates for shares of Axis Capital in a research report issued on Monday, June 15th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the insurance provider will post earnings per share of $3.71 for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $3.70. The consensus estimate for Axis Capital’s current full-year earnings is $13.25 per share.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.72 billion. Axis Capital had a return on equity of 18.12% and a net margin of 16.00%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.17 EPS.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Mizuho set a $137.00 price objective on Axis Capital in a report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Axis Capital from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Axis Capital from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Axis Capital from $123.00 to $119.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on Axis Capital from $115.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.10.

Axis Capital Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of AXS stock opened at $103.32 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $99.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $101.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.70, a PEG ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.51. Axis Capital has a fifty-two week low of $88.07 and a fifty-two week high of $110.34.

Axis Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.11%.

Insider Activity

In other Axis Capital news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 2,542 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.69, for a total value of $250,869.98. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 46,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,573,985.43. This trade represents a 5.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Axis Capital

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Axis Capital by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,954,373 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $762,029,000 after purchasing an additional 43,901 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Axis Capital by 30.9% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,592,270 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $491,786,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083,579 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Axis Capital by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,682,238 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $373,412,000 after purchasing an additional 299,573 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Axis Capital by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,710,902 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $173,504,000 after purchasing an additional 21,001 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Axis Capital by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,631,198 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $170,069,000 after purchasing an additional 15,755 shares during the last quarter. 93.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.