Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) Chairman Sells 20,000 Shares

Universal Insurance Holdings Inc (NYSE:UVE) Chairman Sean Downes sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.27, for a total transaction of $885,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 1,104,645 shares in the company, valued at $48,902,634.15. This represents a 1.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Universal Insurance Price Performance

NYSE:UVE traded down $1.02 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $44.06. The stock had a trading volume of 187,099 shares, compared to its average volume of 205,681. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.51. Universal Insurance Holdings Inc has a one year low of $23.25 and a one year high of $45.15.

Universal Insurance (NYSE:UVE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The insurance provider reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.27. Universal Insurance had a net margin of 13.49% and a return on equity of 37.67%. The firm had revenue of $419.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $614.62 million. Research analysts forecast that Universal Insurance Holdings Inc will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Insurance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Universal Insurance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on UVE shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Universal Insurance in a report on Friday, July 17th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Universal Insurance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Universal Insurance from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Universal Insurance from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Universal Insurance currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Universal Insurance

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pursuit Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Universal Insurance in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,745,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Universal Insurance by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,007,725 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $67,861,000 after acquiring an additional 54,004 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Universal Insurance during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,006,000. Legato Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Universal Insurance by 37.6% during the fourth quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 72,031 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,435,000 after acquiring an additional 19,673 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Universal Insurance by 24.4% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 11,046 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $373,000 after acquiring an additional 2,165 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.61% of the company’s stock.

Universal Insurance Company Profile

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.