Handelsbanken Fonder AB Sells 11,468 Shares of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its stake in The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE:TRV) by 13.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 72,865 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 11,468 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Travelers Companies were worth $13,880,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Travelers Companies by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,377 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $399,000 after buying an additional 307 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Travelers Companies by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,019 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $820,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Travelers Companies by 14.0% in the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,300 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $212,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in Travelers Companies by 14.2% in the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 850 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $138,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Founders Financial Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Travelers Companies by 20.2% in the 3rd quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 8,235 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,345,000 after buying an additional 1,384 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.45% of the company’s stock.

Travelers Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:TRV opened at $214.35 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a market capitalization of $49.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.58. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $221.75 and a 200 day moving average of $197.84. The Travelers Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $157.33 and a 52 week high of $232.75.

Travelers Companies (NYSE:TRV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The insurance provider reported $4.69 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.75 by ($0.06). Travelers Companies had a return on equity of 13.94% and a net margin of 7.32%. The company had revenue of $11.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.11 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Travelers Companies, Inc. will post 17.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Travelers Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $1.05 per share. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. This is a positive change from Travelers Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. Travelers Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.72%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.54, for a total transaction of $533,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 255,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,490,710.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Daniel S. Frey sold 38,000 shares of Travelers Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.55, for a total value of $8,076,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,147,865.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman William H. Heyman sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.54, for a total transaction of $533,850.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 255,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,490,710.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 68,734 shares of company stock worth $14,637,364. Corporate insiders own 1.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on TRV. Citigroup upped their price objective on Travelers Companies from $215.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Travelers Companies in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Travelers Companies from $222.00 to $219.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Travelers Companies from $261.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Travelers Companies from $241.00 to $231.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $223.47.

Travelers Companies Company Profile

The Travelers Companies, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides a range of commercial and personal property, and casualty insurance products and services to businesses, government units, associations, and individuals in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance, and Personal Insurance.