Janus Henderson Group PLC Decreases Holdings in Universal Insurance Holdings Inc $UVE

Janus Henderson Group PLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) by 50.5% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 83,919 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 85,737 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Universal Insurance were worth $2,866,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in UVE. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Universal Insurance by 212.3% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 596,370 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $15,685,000 after buying an additional 405,403 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Universal Insurance by 106.0% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 280,957 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $7,389,000 after buying an additional 144,553 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Universal Insurance by 19.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 815,484 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $27,566,000 after acquiring an additional 134,805 shares during the period. Informed Momentum Co LLC bought a new stake in Universal Insurance in the fourth quarter worth about $4,481,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Universal Insurance by 5.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,953,721 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $51,383,000 after acquiring an additional 108,660 shares during the last quarter. 66.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Universal Insurance Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of Universal Insurance stock opened at $44.06 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $40.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $36.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a 12-month low of $23.25 and a 12-month high of $45.15. The company has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.72.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $419.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $614.62 million. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 13.49% and a return on equity of 37.67%. On average, equities analysts expect that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 31st. Universal Insurance’s payout ratio is presently 8.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on UVE shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Universal Insurance from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Universal Insurance

In other news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of Universal Insurance stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.27, for a total transaction of $885,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 1,104,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,902,634.15. This trade represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 60,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,424,400. Company insiders own 15.00% of the company’s stock.

About Universal Insurance

Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc (NYSE: UVE) is a property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. The company underwrites homeowners and other residential property insurance products to protect against natural catastrophes such as hurricanes, windstorms and fires. It distributes policies primarily through a network of independent agents and brokers, offering coverage for primary residences, secondary homes, condominiums, vacant dwellings and rental properties across its service territory.

In addition to personal lines, Universal provides commercial property and casualty insurance tailored to small businesses and institutional clients.