RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of RLI Corp. (NYSE:RLI) have earned an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $63.20.

RLI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised RLI from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up from $70.00) on shares of RLI in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of RLI from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of RLI from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $57.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, UBS Group set a $74.00 price objective on shares of RLI in a report on Tuesday, July 28th.

Insider Transactions at RLI

In related news, Director Clark C. Kellogg purchased 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $50.90 per share, with a total value of $152,700.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $229,151.80. This represents a 199.73% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of RLI

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in RLI by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,448,929 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $604,542,000 after purchasing an additional 310,857 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of RLI by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,875,002 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $567,823,000 after buying an additional 124,687 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of RLI in the second quarter valued at approximately $492,175,000. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in shares of RLI by 5,642.4% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,759,443 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $340,210,000 after acquiring an additional 5,659,146 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wasatch Advisors LP increased its position in shares of RLI by 40.7% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,631,273 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $214,499,000 after acquiring an additional 1,051,318 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.89% of the company’s stock.

RLI Price Performance

RLI stock opened at $64.38 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.91 billion, a PE ratio of 13.53 and a beta of 0.38. The company’s 50-day moving average is $61.68 and its 200-day moving average is $58.18. RLI has a 1 year low of $47.26 and a 1 year high of $68.29.

RLI (NYSE:RLI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.11. RLI had a return on equity of 17.61% and a net margin of 22.22%.The business had revenue of $575.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $568.70 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that RLI will post 2.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

RLI Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. RLI’s payout ratio is 15.13%.

RLI Company Profile

RLI Corporation (NYSE:RLI) is a specialty property and casualty insurance company focused on underwriting niche risks for businesses and individuals. Headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, the company operates through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering customized coverage solutions. RLI’s approach emphasizes disciplined underwriting, targeted product development and strong customer service to maintain profitability and long-term growth.

Founded in 1965 as Replacement Lens, Inc, RLI initially provided insurance for contact lens manufacturers before shifting its focus to specialty insurance in the 1980s.