Wells Fargo & Company Upgrades Kinsale Capital Group (NYSE:KNSL) to “Strong-Buy”

Kinsale Capital Group (NYSE:KNSL) was upgraded by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Kinsale Capital Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 14th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Kinsale Capital Group from $448.00 to $442.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kinsale Capital Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Kinsale Capital Group from $460.00 to $450.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on shares of Kinsale Capital Group from $470.00 to $422.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $476.60.

Kinsale Capital Group Stock Performance

Shares of KNSL stock opened at $399.05 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.60, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.00. Kinsale Capital Group has a one year low of $349.00 and a one year high of $512.76. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $387.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $428.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a current ratio of 0.09.

Kinsale Capital Group (NYSE:KNSL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $5.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.79 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $497.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $446.00 million. Kinsale Capital Group had a return on equity of 25.66% and a net margin of 26.30%.The business’s revenue was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.20 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Kinsale Capital Group will post 17.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kinsale Capital Group declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $250.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 2.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kinsale Capital Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. DAVENPORT & Co LLC lifted its position in shares of Kinsale Capital Group by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 530,043 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $208,443,000 after purchasing an additional 10,137 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. raised its position in shares of Kinsale Capital Group by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 38,877 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,205,000 after buying an additional 2,049 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Kinsale Capital Group by 76.2% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 25,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,929,000 after buying an additional 10,981 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co. increased its stake in Kinsale Capital Group by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 5,145 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,012,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bennett Selby Investments LP raised its holdings in shares of Kinsale Capital Group by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. Bennett Selby Investments LP now owns 4,863 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,902,000 after acquiring an additional 748 shares in the last quarter. 85.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kinsale Capital Group

Kinsale Capital Group, Inc (NYSE:KNSL) is a specialty property and casualty insurance company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. Established in 2009, the company focuses on underwriting complex and underserved risks across the United States. Kinsale operates through a network of wholesale brokers and independent agencies, offering tailored coverage solutions for a range of niche industries.

The company’s product portfolio includes general liability, business auto, professional liability, environmental liability, inland marine, cyber liability, and other specialty lines.