Dockside LLC Purchases Shares of 22,769 Axis Capital Holdings Limited $AXS

Dockside LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Axis Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 22,769 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,438,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AXS. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Axis Capital during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Axis Capital during the 3rd quarter worth $43,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac acquired a new stake in shares of Axis Capital during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Axis Capital during the 4th quarter worth $51,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Axis Capital during the 4th quarter worth $55,000. 93.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Axis Capital Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of Axis Capital stock opened at $101.47 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $99.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Axis Capital Holdings Limited has a twelve month low of $88.07 and a twelve month high of $110.34. The stock has a market cap of $7.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.51.

Axis Capital (NYSE:AXS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $3.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.09. Axis Capital had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 18.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.72 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.17 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Axis Capital Holdings Limited will post 13.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axis Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. Axis Capital’s dividend payout ratio is 13.11%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Henry B. Smith sold 2,542 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.69, for a total transaction of $250,869.98. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 46,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,573,985.43. This represents a 5.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Axis Capital from $123.00 to $119.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Mizuho set a $137.00 price objective on Axis Capital in a report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Axis Capital from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Axis Capital from $115.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Axis Capital from $130.00 to $126.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Axis Capital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.10.

About Axis Capital

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism.