Wealthstar Advisors LLC Acquires 842 Shares of CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA)

Wealthstar Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of CNA Financial Co. (NYSE:CNA) by 11.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,091 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 842 shares during the quarter. Wealthstar Advisors LLC’s holdings in CNA Financial were worth $367,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CENTRAL TRUST Co bought a new position in CNA Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. bought a new position in CNA Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in CNA Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in CNA Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System bought a new position in CNA Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $99,000. Institutional investors own 98.45% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at CNA Financial

In other CNA Financial news, CAO Daniel Paul Franzetti sold 23,301 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.78, for a total transaction of $1,043,418.78. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 63,996 shares in the company, valued at $2,865,740.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CNA. StockNews.com upgraded shares of CNA Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of CNA Financial from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th.

CNA Financial Price Performance

Shares of CNA Financial stock traded down $0.27 on Thursday, reaching $45.22. The stock had a trading volume of 301,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 345,149. CNA Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $37.54 and a 1 year high of $47.37. The company has a market cap of $12.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The business’s 50 day moving average is $44.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.10.

CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The insurance provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $3.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.94 billion. CNA Financial had a net margin of 9.17% and a return on equity of 14.27%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that CNA Financial Co. will post 4.94 EPS for the current year.

CNA Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This is an increase from CNA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.89%. CNA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.43%.

CNA Financial Profile

CNA Financial Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance products in the United States and internationally. It operates through Specialty, Commercial, International, Life & Group, and Corporate & Other segments. The company offers professional liability coverages and risk management services to various professional firms, including architects, real estate agents, and accounting and law firms; directors and officers, employment practices, fiduciary, and fidelity and cyber coverages to small and mid-size firms, public and privately held firms, and not-for-profit organizations; professional and general liability, as well as associated casualty coverages for healthcare industry; surety and fidelity bonds; and warranty and alternative risks products.