Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Old Republic International Corporation $ORI

Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC lessened its position in shares of Old Republic International Corporation (NYSE:ORI) by 66.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 42,793 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 82,992 shares during the period. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC’s holdings in Old Republic International were worth $1,817,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORI. Clearstead Trust LLC raised its position in Old Republic International by 65.6% during the third quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 727 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Core Alternative Capital purchased a new position in shares of Old Republic International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Caldwell Trust Co raised its position in shares of Old Republic International by 75.0% during the 3rd quarter. Caldwell Trust Co now owns 1,050 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its position in shares of Old Republic International by 37.1% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 1,101 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Old Republic International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 70.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Old Republic International Stock Performance

Shares of ORI opened at $40.65 on Wednesday. Old Republic International Corporation has a 1 year low of $34.43 and a 1 year high of $46.76. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.32. The company has a market capitalization of $9.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27.

Old Republic International (NYSE:ORI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.15). Old Republic International had a return on equity of 16.21% and a net margin of 10.24%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Old Republic International Corporation will post 3.17 EPS for the current year.

Old Republic International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be given a $0.315 dividend. This is an increase from Old Republic International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. Old Republic International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Old Republic International

In related news, SVP Carolyn Monroe sold 5,526 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.28, for a total value of $217,061.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 27,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,094,930. This represents a 16.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John Eric Smith bought 1,135 shares of Old Republic International stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $43.10 per share, for a total transaction of $48,918.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $184,295.60. This trade represents a 36.13% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on ORI. Weiss Ratings downgraded Old Republic International from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Zacks Research downgraded Old Republic International from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $38.00 price objective (down from $51.00) on shares of Old Republic International in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Old Republic International currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $42.50.

Old Republic International Profile

Old Republic International Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the insurance underwriting and related services business primarily in the United States and Canada. It operates through three segments: General Insurance, Title Insurance, and Republic Financial Indemnity Group Run-off Business. The General Insurance segment offers aviation, commercial auto, commercial multi-peril, commercial property, general liability, home and auto warranty, inland marine, travel accident, and workers' compensation insurance products; and financial indemnity products for specialty coverages, including errors and omissions, fidelity, directors and officers, and surety.