Legato Capital Management LLC Has $2.44 Million Stock Holdings in Universal Insurance Holdings Inc $UVE

Legato Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) by 37.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 72,031 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,673 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Universal Insurance were worth $2,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new position in Universal Insurance during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Universal Insurance during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 390.0% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,656 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 2,114 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 492.4% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,796 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 2,324 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Universal Insurance by 11.3% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,249 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $146,000 after purchasing an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. 66.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on UVE shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research upgraded Universal Insurance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Universal Insurance has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.00.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

NYSE:UVE opened at $39.01 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $36.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $33.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.78 and a beta of 0.77. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a 12-month low of $21.96 and a 12-month high of $41.96.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The insurance provider reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $398.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $481.09 million. Universal Insurance had a return on equity of 37.51% and a net margin of 12.22%. On average, analysts anticipate that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Insurance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.48%.

Insider Activity at Universal Insurance

In other news, Chairman Sean P. Downes sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.73, for a total transaction of $774,600.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 1,168,255 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,246,516.15. This trade represents a 1.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Kimberly D. Campos sold 879 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.84, for a total value of $29,745.36. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $251,160.48. This trade represents a 10.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 60,879 shares of company stock worth $2,290,145 in the last 90 days. Corporate 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.