Gabelli Funds LLC Takes $1.68 Million Position in Old Republic International Corporation $ORI

Gabelli Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Old Republic International Corporation (NYSE:ORI) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 39,500 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,678,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Old Republic International by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,470,798 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,081,745,000 after purchasing an additional 123,954 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Old Republic International by 1.8% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,717,255 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $285,268,000 after buying an additional 116,549 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Old Republic International by 55.7% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,779,156 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $221,457,000 after buying an additional 2,066,965 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Old Republic International by 2,840.8% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 3,926,606 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $166,763,000 after buying an additional 3,793,085 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Old Republic International by 19.1% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,585,558 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $152,279,000 after buying an additional 575,778 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Old Republic International

In other Old Republic International news, SVP Carolyn Monroe sold 5,526 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.28, for a total transaction of $217,061.28. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 27,875 shares in the company, valued at $1,094,930. This represents a 16.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Eric Smith acquired 1,135 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $43.10 per share, for a total transaction of $48,918.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 4,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $184,295.60. This trade represents a 36.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Old Republic International Price Performance

ORI opened at $40.03 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.31. 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 Corporation has a 1 year low of $34.43 and a 1 year high of $46.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.84 billion, a PE ratio of 11.81 and a beta of 0.73.

Old Republic International (NYSE:ORI) last issued its quarterly 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 last year, the business posted $0.90 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Old Republic International Corporation will post 3.17 EPS for the current year.

Old Republic International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Investors 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Old Republic International’s dividend payout ratio is 37.17%.

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.